BIBLICAL HISTORY 



BIBLICAL LANGUAGE, 



Copious Extracts from the Prophetical and Poetical Books, Explanatory Notes, 
One Thousand ExAMiNA-piOsf^jiyiESTioxs and Numerous Illustrations. 



A BOOK FOR SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES. 



Dr. SOLOMON DEUTSCH, 

Author of the "PRACTiCAL Hebrew Grammar," and "Key to the Pentateuch.-' 



Hartford, Conn.: 

THK CASE, LOCKWOOD, AN'D BRAINARD CO., PRINT. 

1 875. 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS J 

f.^?^K^fo I 

^ ^'/^//.jJA \ 

$ 

t UNITED STATES OP AMERICA, f 



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BIBLICAL HISTORY 



BIBLICAL LANGUAGE, 



Copious Extracts from the Prophetical astd Poetical Books, Explanatory Notes, 
One Thousand Examination Questions and Numerous Illustrations. 



A BOOK FOR SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES. 



Dr. SOLOMON DEUTSCH, 

Author op the "Practical Hebrew Grammar," and "Key to the Pentateuch.'* 



-1 

f 5 f 




Hartford, Conn.: 

THE CASE, LOCKWOOD, AND BRAINARD CO., PRINT. 

1875. 



Tl 




Uvij Tiipe Photo Ens. Co., 



BIBLICAL HISTORY 



BIBLICAL LANGUAGE, 



Copious Extracts fbom the Pbophetical and Poetical Books, Exflanatort Notk, 
One Thousand Examination Questions and Numerous Illustrations. 



A BOOK FOR SCHOOLS AM) FAMILIES. 



Dr. SOLOMON DEUTSCH, 
Author of the "Practical Hebrew Orammab," and "Ket to ths Pektatsucb.' 




' p I 




Hartford, Conn.: 

THE case, LOCKWOOD, AND BRAIXARD CO., PRINT. 

1875. 



^i 






y 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1 875, by 

SOLOMON DEUTSCH, 

In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at "Washington, D. C. 



MANUFACTURED BY ^frti. H, LOCKWOOD, 

THE CASE, LOCKWOOD & BRAIN ARD CO., euictrottpbb 

BINDERS AND PRINTERS. 

HARTFORD, CONN. 
HARTFORD, CONN. ' 



PREFACE, 



For years past, the want of an English work which should 
be an aid in the teaching of Biblical History has been felt 
and commented upon by the Jewish press and Rabbinical 
conventions. To what extent the present w^rk answers this 
desideratum, must be left to the judgment of competent 
critics. The author is at least conscious of having devoted 
much earnest thought and effort to the attainment of this 
end, with the view of embodying in the book all that appeared 
to him as either necessary or desirable. 

The following are the main features of the plan pursued 
by the author: 

First. To give the Scripture narrative with the utmost 
degree of faithfulness and completeness. 

Second. To combine and assimilate the several versions 
and accounts of events which are frequently met with in va- 
rious parts or books of the Bible, so as to make them appear 
connected and of one mould. I take occasion to refer for 
example to the differing accounts which occur at the very 
beginning, of the creation in general, and of the creation of 
man in particular; to the two accounts of the first sojourn of 
David with Saul; and to the completed accounts of the kings 
of Judah, as given in the Chronicles and in the Books of the 
Prophets, particularly in Isaiah and Jeremiah. 

Third. To render the Bible narrative as fully as possible 
in the language of the Bible. First, because none other 
could replace the charm of its sublime and beautiful diction, 
and retain at the same time its simple and unadorned purity. 
Further, because this cannot fail to familiarize the mind of 
the young with the Holy Book itself, and to arouse and en- 
courage in their hearts a love and reverence for it. That to 
avoid making the work too voluminous it was frequently 
necessary to abridge passages, and on various pedagogic 



4 PREFACE. 

grounds to alter here and there the phraseology, will "be gen- 
erally manifest.^ 

Fourth. By means of copious chronological, archaeolog- 
ical, geographical, ethical, religious, and literary notes, more 
particularly such as have special reference to Bibliology, to 
facilitate the comprehension of the text of the book, and of 
the original Bible text as well. 

Fifth. To awaken and stimulate in the more advanced 
pupils a desire for a more intimate knowledge of the original 
Bible text, and partially at least to acquaint them with the 
rich intellectual 'creations of ancient Israel, extracts from the 
Prophetic and Poetic Books have been interwoven. 

Sixth. To render the main thought embodied in a narra- 
tive clearly perceptible, the latter is generally concluded, and 
quite often begun, with one or more suitable Bible quotations. 

Seventh. Sentences and utterances in the text which are 
of especial religious or ethical signij5cance, as well as the 
names of important personages mentioned for the first time, 
are distinguished by larger print. 

Eighth. To embrace the entire subject within the com- 
pass of one volume, it was found necessary to distinguish by 
larger type those portions of the book that are adapted espe- 
cially to the use of beginners. It is, however, scarcely to be 
expected that this class of students will get beyond the period 
of the death of Moses. The judgment of the teacher will 
decide which portions of the text in smaller print are suited 
for the study of his pupils. 

Ninth. A sketch of the geography of the Bible, a map of 
Palestine, and a number of illustrations, chiefly of Biblical 
antiquities, are added, to promote the more thorough study 
of the history. 

Tenth. One thousand questions have been attached for 
use in examination, so that the teacher need but specify the 
numbers of the questions which he may desire answered at 
each succeeding lesson. 

The book, with its varied contents, is thus presented to 

the public in the expectation that it will do good. May the 

Lord's blessing accompany it. 

DR. S. DEUTSCH. 
Hartford, September, 1875. 



aElSTESIS, 

WHICH MEANS 

THE BOOK OF THE BEGINiXLXG OF ALL THINGS. 



1. THE CREATION. 

(1 Mos. 1—2, 3.) 

In the beginning God created the heaven and the 
EARTH, that is, the whole visible world. The earth was 
without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of 
the deep; but the Spirit of God was brooding upon the 
waters. And God said: Let there be light, and there was 
light. ^ And God saw the light that it was good, and God 
divided the light from the darkness. And God called the 
light Day, and the darkness He called Night; and it was 
evening and it was morning; the first day.* 

And God said : Let there be an expanse in the midst of 
the water, and let it divide the water from the water. Thus 
were divided the waters above and the waters beneath; and 
God called the expanse Heaven; and it was evening and it 
was morning; the second day. 

And God said: Let the water under the heaven be gath- 
ered together into one place, and let the ground appear, 
and it was so. And God called the ground Land, and the 
gathering together of the waters He called Seas, and God 
saw that it was good. And God said: Let the earth bring 
forth grass, herb yielding seed, fruit-trees bearing fruit after 
their kind. And the land brought forth herbs yielding seed, 
and trees bearing fruit, and God saw that it was good; and 
it was evening and it was morning; the third day. 

And God said: Let there be lights in the expanse of the 
heaven, to divide the day from the night; and let them be 
for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years, and to 

^ On the first day God formed light: on the fourth, he caused the snn, moon and 
stars to be seen as the means of communicating: this light to our lower world. 

2 The Hebrews and many other people of antiquity began their day from the 
evening. 



6 GENESIS. 

give light upon the earth; and it was so. And God made 
the two great lights : the great light to rule the day, and the 
lesser light to rule the night, and the stars. And God saw 
that it was good ; and it was evening and it was morning ; the 
fourth day. 

And God said: Let the waters swarm with swarms of liv- 
ing creatures, and let fowl fly above the earth in the expanse 
of heaven. And God created the great sea monsters, and 
every living creature that moves in the waters after their 
kind, and every winged fowl after its kind, and God saw that 
it was good. And God blessed them, saying: Be fruitful, 
and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let the fowl 
multiply in the earth. And it was evening and it was morn- 
ing; the fifth day. 

And God said: Let the land bring forth living creatures, 
cattle (tame beasts), and creeping things, and beasts of the 
land (wild beasts), after their kind : and it was so, and God 
saw that it was good. 

And God said : Let us make man in our image after our 
LIKENESS, and let him rule over the fish of the sea, and over 
the fowl of the skies, and over the cattle, and over all the land, 
and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the land. So 
God created man. He formed him from the dust of the ground 
(hence his name was Adam),^ and breathed into his nostrils 
the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the 
Lord God said: It is not good that man should be alone: I 
WILL make him a helpmeet FOR HIM. Then the Lord God 
caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and took one of his 
ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof. And the rib, which 
He had taken from man. He built up into a woman, and 
brought her to the man. And Adam said: This is bone of 
my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman,^ 
because she was taken out of man. Then God blessed them, 
and said to them : Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the 
earth and subdue it ; and rule over the fish in the sea, and 
over the fowl of the skies, and over every living thing that 
moves upon the earth. And God saw everything He had 
MADE : and behold, IT WAS VERY GOOD. And It was even- 
ing and it was morning ; the sixth day. 

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the 

1 God ppeaks in the plural as kinpfs do. Likeness means : infeUectual and ttjai/^ 
t^MO^ likeness, intelligence, moral power, for God is a pure spirit. 
^ DHX (Adam) earthly man from nmX (Adamah) the ground. 
^^''H (Ish) man (a man of worth— vir in Latin.) 
ntS^X (Ishah) woman, prop, she-man. 



GENESIS. 7 

host of them. And on the seventh day God finished His 
work which He had made. He ceased on the seventh day 
from all His work which He had made. And God blessed 
the seventh day and sanctified it : because on it He had 
ceased from all His work which He had made. 

By the word of the Lord were the heavens made ; and all the host of 
them by the breath of His mouth. (Ps. 33, 6.) 

O Lord, how manifold are Thy works ; in wisdom hast Thou made them 
all; the earth is full of Thy riches. (Fs. 104, 24.; 



2. THE GARDEN OF EDEN. THE COMMAND. SIN 
AND ITS CONSEQUENCES. 

[1 Mos.— 2, 3.] 

The Lord God then planted a garden in the eastern part of 
Eden ;* and out of its ground He made grow all kinds of 
trees that were pleasant to the sight and good for food, and 
He planted the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of 
Good and Evil in the middle of the garden. 

Then He took the man, and put him into the garden of 
Eden, to cultivate and to watch it. And the Lord God com- 
manded him, saying: Of every tree of the garden thou may- 
est freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and 
evil, thou shalt not eat; for in the day that thou eatest thereof 
thou shalt surely die. ' 

Now the serpent was more subtile than any beast of the 
field which the Lord God had made, and it said to the wo- 
man: Yea, has God said: Ye shall not eat of every tree of 
the garden? And the woman answered: We may eat of 
all the trees except the one that stands in the middle of 
the garden, for if we so much as touch that one — so God told 
us — we shall die. But the serpent replied: Ye shall not 
surely die. For God doth know that if you eat of it, your 
eyes will be opened; and you will be like God, knowing good 
and evil. 

And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food 
and that it was pleasant to the sight, and to be desired to 
make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat; 
and gave also to her husband to partake with her, and he did 
eat. 

Then the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew 
that they were naked; and they sewed fig-leaves and made 
themselves aprons. 

1 p]) (Eden) delight, loveliness. The word here is a proper noun, and points to 
a region, the extent of which is unknown. 



8 GENESIS. 

Now wlien they heard the voice of the Lord God in the 
garden, they hid themselves from His presence amongst the 
trees of the garden. And the Lord God called to Adam, and 
said to him, Where art thou ? And he said, I heard Thy 
voice in the garden; and I was afraid, because I was naked, 
and I hid myself. And He said: Who told thee that thou 
wast naked ? Hast thou eaten of the tree whereof I com- 
manded thee not to eat ? Then the man said: The woman 
whom Thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the 
tree and I did eat. Now the Lord God said to the woman: 
What is this thou hast done? And the woman said: The 
serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. 

And the Lord God said to the serpent: Because thou hast 
done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every 
beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust 
shalt thou eat all the days of thy life. And I will put enmity 
between thee and the human race, and between thy seed and 
her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his 
heel. 

To the woman He said: I will greatly multiply thy sorrow 
with thy children; thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he 
shall rule over thee. 

And to Adam He said: Because thou hast hearkened to 
the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree of which I 
commanded thee, saying: Thou shalt not eat of it; cursed is 
the ground for thy sake, in sorrow shalt thou get food from 
it all ^e days of thy life. Thorns also and thistles shall it 
grow to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field. In the 
sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, until thou return to 
the soil out of which thou wast taken; for dust thou art, and 
to dust thou shalt return. 

And Adam called his wife's name Eve,^ because she was 
the mother of all living. Now the Lord God made for Adam 
and his wife coats of skin, and clothed them. Then He sent 
him from the garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he 
was taken. 

Who can say, " I have kept mv heart clean, I am free from sin ?" 
(Prov. 20, 9.) 

If thou eatest of the lahor of thy hands, then is happiness thine, and it 
shall be well with thee. (Ps. 128, 2.) 

3. CAIN AND ABEL.— (C. E. 4004.) 

(1 Mo9.— 4.) 

To Adam and Eve were born sons and daughters, of whom 
two sons were called Cain- and AheV Cain, the elder, was 



» n;n, (life-giving.) app 3^7371 



GENESIS. 9 

a tiller of tlie ground, but Abel, the younger, was a keeper 
of sheep. 

In process of time it came to pass that Cain and Abel 
brought offerings to the Lord. They gave of the produce of 
their labor: Cain of the fruits of the ground, Abel of the 
first-born of his sheep and goats, especially the fat of these 
animals. And the Lord looked in mercy to Abel and to his 
offering; but to Cain and his offering he did not look; and 
Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. Then the 
Lord said to Cain: Why art thou wroth? and why is thy 
countenance fallen? Canst thou not lift up thy face boldly, 
if thou do well? But if thou do not well, sin lies in wait for 
thee at the door, but thou shouldst rule over it. 

Cain, however, did not act on this divine counsel; and as 
soon as the two brothers were in the field together, Cain rose 
up against Abel his brother, and slew him. 

Then the Lord came again to Cain and asked him: Where 
is thy brother? And Cain answered: I know not; am I my 
brother's keeper? But the Lord replied: What hast thou 
done? thy brother's blood cries to Me from out of the ground. 
And now: Be thou cursed and cast out from the land which 
has opened its mouth to take up thy brother's blood which 
thou hast spilt. When thou tillest the ground, it shall not 
put forth its strength to serve thee. For thee it shall be 
unfruitful, a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be on the 
earth. 

Then Cain, terrified by this curse, cried out : The punish- 
ment is too hard to bear! See, Thou hast banished me from- 
this land, and wilt never think of me again, and it shall come 
to pass that any one that happens to meet me will kill me. 
But the Lord answered him: No, whosoever slays Cain, ven- 
geance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord 
gave a sign to Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 

As soon as this sentence was pronounced, Cain left this 
region, and after journeying eastwards, settled in Nod (the 
land of wandering). 

There his Avife bore him a son, after Avhom he called the town which he 
founded, Enoch. A descendant of Enoch Avas Lamech. Noav Lamech 
took two wives, called Adah and Zillah, Avhose children Avere very cele- 
brated men. Adah's sons Avere Jahal and Juhal, the first of whom insti- 
tuted the AA^andering shepherd life, Avhile the second was the discoverer of 
various musical instruments, such as the lyre and the pipe. Zillah gave 
birth to Tubal-Cain, the copper and iron smith, and his sister, Naamuh. 
Then Lamech comforted his wives with the assurance that, with the aid 
of the bronze and iron insti-uments, he could kill any one who injured 
him: 

Adah and Zillah ! hear my voice, 
Ye Avives of Lamech, hearken to my speech ! 



10 GENESIS. 

For I slay a man if he woundelli me, 
Even a youn<^ man, if he hurteth me, 

Lo ! Cain would be avenged seven-fold, 
But Lamech seventy-and-seven fold ! 
When Adam had lived a hundi'ed and thirty years, he had another son, 
and called him Seth. After his birth he lived eight hundred years. So 
altogether Adam was nine hundred and thirty years old. Then he died. 
The men of this time in general reached a great age. Methuselah, the 
greatest, for he was nine hundred and sixty-nine years old when he died. 
The sacrifice of wicked ones is an abomination to the Eternal ; but the 
prayer of upright ones is His delight. (Prov. l.*), 8.) 

Eor God shall bring every work into judgment concerning every secret 
thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil. (Eccl. 12, 14.) 

4. THE HISTORY OF NOAH. THE FLOOD.— C. E. 

2948-1998. 

(1 Mos,— 6, 7.) 

God saw that the wickedness of man was great, and all the 
purposes and thoughts of his heart only evil continually, 
and He said: I will destroy man whom I have created 
from the face of the earth. But JSfoah,^ who was a just and 
perfect man in his times, and walked with God, found grace 
in the eyes of the Lord, and He therefore commanded him to 
build an ark, saying to him : The end of all flesh comes up 
before Me; for the earth is filled with violence. And be- 
hold, I do bring a flood of water upon the earth, to destroy 
all flesh, wherein is the breath of hfe; all that is in the land 
shall expire. But with thee will I estabhsh my covenant; 
and thou shalt go into the ark, thou and thy sons, Shem,^ 
Ham,^ and Japheth,^ and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with 
thee. ' And of the animals, of all kinds, two of each shalt 
thou bring into the ark, to keep alive with thee; they shall 
be male and female. Now therefore make thee an ark of re- 
sinous timber, and cover it outside and in with pitch. It 
shall be three hundred cubits^ long, fifty broad, and thirty 
high. Divide it into three stories, and sub-divide it into 
chambers. Moreover, • make an opening in it, to let in the 
light and the air, and a door. Then take to thee of all food 
that is eaten, and gather it to thee; in order that it shall be 
for food for thee and for them. Thus did Noah ; according 
to all that God commanded him, so did he. 

In seven days ^ the waters of the flood were upon the land. 

'nj 2Qtj;^ 3QP, 4;^^^ 

* A cubit was probably the len,<?th from the elbow to the end of the hand. 

8 The flood befian on the 17th of the secoiul month and subsided on the 17th of 
the seventh month, so that it lasted five months, and as the the mouths are said 
to have consisted of 150 days, a Noachic year numbered 300 days, correspond iu<» 
with the old Egyptian year. 



GENESIS. 1 1 

All the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the 
windows of the skies were opened, and the waters fell upon 
the earth in torrents forty days and *forty nights. And 
when the waters increased, they bore up the ark, and it was 
raised above the earth. . And the waters prevailed and in- 
creased greatly upon the earth, overtopping by fifteen cubits 
all the high mountains. Thus all flesh expired that moved 
upon the land, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and 
of every creeping thing, and every man. But Noah and his 
family were safe in the ark, and with them all the creatures, 
quadrupeds, reptiles, and birds, which had come in to them. 
And the waters prevailed upon the earth one hundred and 
fifty days. 

God searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the 
thoughts : if thou seek Him He will be found of thee; but if thou forsake 
Him, He will cast thee off forever. — I Chron. 28, 9. 



5. THE END OF THE FLOOD. 

(1 Mos. 8, 9.) 

Now God remembered Noah, and every living thing that 
was with him in the ark, and He caused a strong wind to pass 
over the earth, and the waters began to abate. Little by little 
the waters returned from off the land ; and after one hundred 
and fifty days they were abated, and the ark rested upon the 
mountains of AraraV At the end of forty days, Noah 
opened the window of the ark, and sent forth a raven, which 
went to and fro until the waters were dried up from the 
earth. After the raven he sent forth a dove from him, to see 
if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground. 
But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she 
returned to him into the ark, for the waters were on the face 
of the whole land; and he put forth his hand, and took her 
into the ark. He waited yet other seven days ; and again 
he sent forth the dove. And she came in to him in the 
evening, and lo, in her mouth was a fresh olive leaf ; so 
Noah knew that the waters were abated from off the land. 
And he waited yet other seven days, and sent forth the dove, 
which returned not again to him any more. 

Now Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, 
and behold, the face of the ground was dry. And he went 
forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with 
him. Every beast, and creeping thing, and every fowl, went 
forth out of the ark. 

1 The hi^^hlands of Armenia. The mountain which we call Ararat is denomi- 
nated by the natives Massis. 



12 GENESIS. 

Then Noali built an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt- 
offerings on the altar. And the Lord said, I will not again 
curse the ground any more for man's sake. While the earth 
remains, seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat, and sum- 
mer and winter, and day and night,, shall not cease. 

And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them : Be fruitful and 
multiply and replenish the earth and reign over all its animals. Fear of 
you shall come upon ail the animals. Every moving thing that lives shall 
be food for you. Only flesh in v^hich there is still its soul, its blood, shall 
you not eat.i But your blood shall I demand from any one who sheds it. 
Whether it be a beast or one of your fellow men. I shall avenge the 
soul of a man which he has taken away. Whoever sheds the blood of 
man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man after His likeness. 

Furthermore God spoke to Noah, and to his sons with him, saying: 
behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you. 
There shall not be again a flood to destroy all flesh ; and this is the token 
of the covenant : I have set my bow"-^ in the clouds. Now when I brjng 
a cloud over the earth, and the bow shall be seen in the cloud, then I 
will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you. and every 
living creature of all flesh ; and the waters shall no more become a flood 
to destroy all flesh. 

And the sons of Noah that came forth from the ark were Shem, and 
Ham, and Japheth, and of them was the whole earth overspread. Noah 
was a husbandman, and he was the first who planted a vineyard. Once 
he drank too freely of the juice of the grape, and became intoxicated. 
His son Ham, the father of Canaan, finding him in this condition treated 
him with indignity ; but his two brothers^ moved with filial regard, covered 
their father with a mantle. When Noah awoke from his wine, and was 
conscious of the conduct of Ham, in punishment he pronounced a curse 
upon Canaan the son of Ham, and his posterity, but his other sons he 
blessed. 

Offer to God thanksgiving ; and pay thv vows to the Most High. — 
Ps. 50, 14. 



6. THE TOWER OF BABEL. (C. E. 2348—1996.) 

(1 Mos. 11.) 

At that time the whole land was of one language, and of 
one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from 
the land of Ararat eastward, that they found a plain in the 
land of Shinar,'-^ and they dwelt there. Now they said one 
to another : Go to, let us make brick and burn them thor- 
oughly, and let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top 
may be in the sky; so will our name be known, and we shall 

• This is one of the seven precepts of Noah, as they are called, the observance 
of which was required of all Jewish proselytes. The other six are: the prohibi- 
tion of murder, the recognition of civil authority, the prohibition of idolatry, of 
blasphemy, of incest and of theft. The Jewish Rabbins say that this prohibition 
against blood was made on account of an ancient custom 'of catin^j rtesh of living 
animals, cut or torn from them and devoured while reeking with Uie warm blood. 

" Not that the rainbow did not before exist, but, from that time, whenever we 
looked on it, we were to remember what God had said to Noah. 

s The country around Babylon, especially the southern district of Mesopotamia. 



GENESIS. 13 

not be scattered all over the earth. But when the Lord had 
seen the undertaking, He said: Behold the people is one, 
and they have all one language; and this is the beginning 
of their deeds, and now nothing will be impossible to them, 
which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us confound 
their language, that they may not understand one another's 
speech. So the Lord scattered them thence over all the 
earth; and they left off to build a city. Therefore is the 
name of this city called Babel} 

Amon.2: those that journeyed from the East was also a descendant of 
Shorn, whose name was Terah, wlio had three sons : Abram,'^ Nahor, and 
llaran. This latter was the father of Lot. Now Haran died hefore his 
father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ui\^ of the Chaldees. Abram and 
Nahor took them wives ; the name of Abram's wife was Sarni, and of 
Nahor's Milcah, the daughter of Haran. But Sarai had no child. And 
Terah toolc Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and 
Sarai his daughter-in-law, and went forth with them from Ur of the Chal- 
dees, to go into the land of Canaan ; and they came to Haran,'^ and 
dwelt there. Here Terah died at the age of two hundred and five years. 

God that formed the earth and made it, He formed it to be inhabited. — 
Isa. 4.5, 8. 

I [the Lord] will cause the arrogancy of* the proud to cease, and will 
lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. — Isa. 13, 11. 



PATRIARCHAL HISTORY. 

FROM THE BIRTH OF ABRAHAM TO THE DEATH OF JOSEPH. 

c.^. 1996—1635. 
7. CALL OF ABRAM. SEPARATION FROM LOT. 

(1 Mos. 12, 13.) 

Now the Lord said to Abram: get thee out of thy country, 
and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, to a land 
that 1 will show thee : And I will make of thee a great 
nation, and bless thee, and make thy name great, and thou 
shalt be a blessing : I will bless them that bless thee, and 
curse him that curses thee ; and in thee shall all the 

FAMILIES OF the EARTH BE BLESSED. 

So Abram departed, when he was 75 years old, and he 
took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their 
substance that they had gathered, and the persons whom they 
had gotten in Haran ; and they went forth to go to the land 



'^33 [coufusion.] ^q-,;^^^ 



3 t/r, by the most ancient traditions identified with the city of Orfah in the 
highlands of Mesopotamia. 

< Haran or Charran, east of the Euphrates, celebrated amontj the Romans under 
the name of Charrae, where Crassutf fell. A recent writer places Harau near Da- 
mascus. 



14 GENESIS. 

of Canaan.^ ''^ And lie journeyed, going on still towards the 
south, and in his journey Abram maintained publicly the 
worship of the one true God. 

A famine breaking out in the land, he went down into 
Egypt to sojourn there. Thence, however, he soon returned 
again into the south of Canaan. 

Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. Lot 
also, who went with Abram, had flocks and herds, and tents. 
But the land did not bear them to dwell together ; for their 
substance was great, and the Canaanites and Perizzites had 
possession of a great deal of the land ; so it became too small 
for them. Thus a strife arose between the herdmen of 
Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle about pastur- 
age and watering places. And Abram said to Lot, let there be 
no striving, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between 
my herdmen and thy herdmen ; for we are near kinsmen. 
Is not the whole land before thee ? Separate thyself, I pray 
thee, from me ; and if thou wilt take the left hand, then I 
will go to the right ; or if thou depart to the right hand, then 
I will go to the left. And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld 
all the plain of the Jordan — the main river of Canaan, that 
it was well watered everywhere: the southern portion es- 
pecially, where the Dead Sea now is, but where Sodom and 
Gomorrah then lay, was a true ''garden of God,' a para- 
dise, like Egypt in fruitfulness. And he chose him all this 
plain and journeyed east. Thus they separated themselves 
the one from the other. Abram dwelt in the land of Ca- 
naan, and Lot in the cities of the plain, moving his tent 
towards Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked and 
sinners before the Lord exceedingly. 

I have called thee by thy name ; thou art mine. — Isa. 43, 1. 

Depart from evil, and do good ; seek peace and pursue it. — Ps. 34, 14. 



8. ABRAM RESCUES LOT. ABRAM'S DISINTER- 
ESTEDNESS. 

(1 M08. 14.) 

In the plain of the Jordan there were five old cities, Sodom 
where Lot lived, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboim and Bela, or 
Zoar. For twelve years these cities served Chedorlaomer, 

1 Leaving Haran, Abram must have crossed the river Euphrates, from which 
crossing it is very commonly supposed the name Hebrew, ['*13^' from 13J.' to 
pass over] is derived. 

''Canaan lies between the Mediterranean west, mountains of Arabia east, those 
of Lel)anon and Phcpnicia north. Length, from Dan to Beersheba, 200 miles; 
breadth, from Mediterranean to eastern borders, 90 miles. 



GENESIS. 15 

the powerful King of Elam,^ to tlie east of the Tigris, but 
then they threw olf his yoke. Hardly had a year gone by, 
however, before this prince appeared with three neighboring 
kings to reduce them once more to submission. The king of 
Sodom and his allies advanced to meet him — five against 
four. But in spite of this, they were defeated and dispersed, 
while numbers of fugitives fell into the wells of asphalt,- of 
v^'hich the valley was full, and the rest escaped to the hills. 
Thereupon the eastern kings went into the houses and carried 
off all that was worth having; they also took some of the peo- 
ple. Lot lost all that he had, and was carried off with all 
his family as captives. 

When Abram heard of it, he instantly resolved upon 
Lot's rescue. He summoned Mamreh and his two brothers, 
Aner and UsJicol, who were his confederates, and armed his 
318 own home-born, tried and faithful servants. With this 
force Abram set out in pursuit of the foreign princes. Over- 
taking them at Dan^ one of the most northern points of 
Canaan, he divided his men into three companies, fell upon 
the enemy from different quarters by night, fought with 
them, and God gave him the victory. Thus he brought back 
the whole spoil of the enemy, both in men and goods, and 
also Lot, his brother's son, and his goods. Now when he 
returned from the victory, the king of Sodom went out to 
meet him. 

Melchizedek also, king of Salem,^ brought forth bread and wine ; he was 
a priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said: Blessed 
be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth ; and 
blessed be the most high God, Avho has delivered thy enemies into thy 
hand. And Abram gave him a tithe of all. 

And the king of Sodom implored Abram to be content 
with the cattle and the other booty he had seized from the 
enemy, but to give their liberty to the captives that had fallen 
into his hands. Whereupon Abram said to the king of 
Sodom: I have lifted up my hand'' to the Lord, the most 
high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not 
retain anything, not the least thing, from a thread even to a 
shoe-latchet ! for thou shalt never be able to say: I have 
made Abram rich. Save only that which the young men 
have eaten, and the portion of the men who went with me, 
Aner, Eshcol, and Mamreh: let them take their portion. 

He that pursueth righteousness and mercy, findeth life, righteousness, 
and honor. — Pro v. 21, 21. 

J Elamites, who dwelt from the Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea ; at a later day 
they were absorbed by the Persian^. 

2 A liquid of a pitchy nature, which still abounds in those parts. 

3 Salem. Abbreviation for Jerusalem. 

♦ First example of an oath with the uplifted hand, in solemn appeal to God. 



16 GENESIS. 

9. DIVINE PROMISES TO ABRAHAM. BIRTH OF 
ISHMAEL. 

(1 Mos. 15, 16.) 

After these things, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, 
saying : Fear not, Abram ! I am thy shield ; thy reward shall be exceed- 
ing great. And Abram said : Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing 
I go continually childless, and the heir of my house is Dammeseh EUeser ! 
Behold, to me thou hast given no seed, and lo, one born in my house shall 
be my heir. But the Lord said to him : This shall not be thy heir ; but 
thy own son shall be thy heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and 
said : Look now towards heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to tell 
ihcm, and He said to him : So shall thy seed be. And Abram believed 
in the Lord, and He counted it to him for righteousness. And He said 
to him : I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to 
give thee this land to inherit it. 

Sarai, Abram's wife, had a handmaid, an Egyptian, Avhose name was 
Ilaf^ar, and despairing of children herself, she gave Hagar to her husband 
Abram as a secondary wife, intending, should she have any children, to 
adopt them as her own. But afterwards Hagar displeased Sarai, her mis- 
tress ; and being harshly treated, she left the tents of her master, and set 
out for her own country. But she had not got far on her journey, be- 
fore the Lord's messenger met her by a well, on the way to the wilderness 
of Shur,^ and he said to her : Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence art thou come, 
and whither art thou going 1 And she replied, from the ftice of Sarai, my 
mistress, I am fleeing. But the divine messenger said : " Go back to thy 
mistress and humble thyself before her. Moreover, he predicted to her 
that she should have a son whose name should be Ishmael ;^ he would be 
a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand 
against him, and he would dwell to the east of all his brethren. So Hagar 
went back to Abram, and soon saw the divine promise fulfilled, for she gave 
birth to a son and called him Ishmael. And the Lord appeared to Abram 
again Avhen he was ninety-nine years old, and said to him : I am the Al- 
mighty God; walk before Me, and be perfect. And I will 
MAKE My covenant betw><;en Me and thee, and multiply thee 

exceedingly, and thou SHALT BE A FATHER OF A MULTITUDE OP NA- 
TIONS. Neither shall thy name any more be called ABRAM ;^ but thy 
name shall be ABRAHAM;* for a father of many nations have I made 
thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish My covenant 
between Me and thee, and thy seed after thee, in their generations, for an 
everlasting covenant, to be a God to thee and to thy seed after thee. Ai d I 
will give to thee, and to thy .seed after thee, the land of thy sojourning, 
all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession y' and I will be their 
God. And My covenant shall be in thy^ and thy descendants' flesh for an 
everlasting covenant. And as for Sarai, thy wife, thou shalt not call her 
name SARAI,^ but SARAH' shall her name be. And I Avill ble.ss her, 
and give thee a son of her : yea, I will bless her and she shall be a mother 
of nations ; kings of people shall be of her. 

Thou, O Lord wilt bless the righteous ; with favor wilt tliou compass 
him as with a buckler. — Ps. 5, 13. 

» Now D'schifar, the north-western part of the desert of Arabia, bordering upon 

Egypt. 

* Sx^^DB'' (that is : God hears.) ^ D'^^3X (Ab-ram, exalted father.) 

* Dn*^3X (Ab-raham, Father of a multitude ; rahani, in Arabic, being a vast 

number, a great multitude. ^ Upon condition of their obedience to God. 
' '"^ty (my princeeu, a phrase of courtesy.) 

'^n'^t!^ (princess; absohitely— mother of kings.) 




Sandals (p. 17, Note). 




Water Skin-Bottle (p 20). 

Levy Type Photo-Eng.Co., Baltimore. 



GENESIS. 17 

10. ABRAHAM AND THE THREE HEAVENLY 

VISITORS. ABRAHAM'S INTERCESSION 

FOR SODOM. 

(1 Mos. 18.) 

Abraham was sitting, about mid-day, wlien the sun was 
hot, in the door of his tent, and he saw at a little distance 
before him three men approaching. He hastened to meet 
them, and bowing himself to the ground he said : My Lords, 
if now I have favor in your sight, pass not away, I pray 
you, from your servant. Let a little water now be fetched, 
and wash your feet,^ and rest yourselves under the tree. 
And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort your 
hearts; afterwards you shall pass on; for therefore are you 
even come to your servant. And they said: Do, as thou 
hast spoken. 

Now Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said: 
Hasten with the finest flour, knead it, and make cakes. 
He himself* ran to the herd, and fetched a calf tender and 
good, and ordered a lad to dress it hastily; and a plentiful 
meal of cakes and meat, with fresh and curdled milk, was 
soon prepared. Abraham waited on liis guests himself. 
After their meal they said to him: Where is Sarah, thy 
wife ? And he said: She is in the tent. And one of them 
said: I shall surely come again to thee at the return of this 
season, and behold, Sarah thy wife shall then have a son. 
And Sarah heard it behind the tent door. Now Abraham 
and Sarah were old, far gone in age; therefore Sarah laughed 
within herself, saying: After I am waxed old shall I have 
still delight, my lord being old also ? And the man said to 
Abraham: "Wherefore did Sarah laugh ? Is any thing too 
hard for the Lord ? 

Then the three men rose and looked toward Sodom: and 
Abraham went with them to escort them. And the Lord 
said: Shall I hide from Abraham that which I will do; see- 
ing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty 
nation and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in 
him ? For I have foreknown and chosen him, that he may 
command his children and his house after him, and they shall 
keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment. So 
he said: The cry over Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and 
their sin indeed is very grievous. I will go down now and 



^ In some of the hot countries people wear sandals, or i=oles with straps to them, 
that fro over the top of the foot to keep them on. After a journey it is very re- 
freshing to wash the feet to make them clean and cool. 



18 GENESIS. 

see their deeds phat I may know what I must do. When 
Abraham heard this, he was grieved for the people of Sodom. 
He did not know it was so very wicked a place as it 
was ; and as we should always think as kindly as we can 
of everybody, Abraham hoped there might be some good 
people there, for whose sake God would spare the wicked 
cities. He, therefore, besought God for them, and said: 
"Wilt Thou destroy the righteous with the wicked ? Suppose 
there be fifty righteous within the city, wilt Thou destroy 
and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are there- 
in ? Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right ? The 
Lord promised that to him and said : If I find in Sodom fifty 
righteous, then I will spare all the place for their sakes. But 
Abraham answered and said: Behold now, I have taken up- 
on me to speak to the Lord, who am but dust and ashes: 
Suppose there shall lack five of the fifty righteous, wilt Thou 
destroy all the city for five? And He said: If I find there 
forty and five, I will not destroy it. And he spoke to Him yet 
again and said: Mayhap there shall be forty found there. And 
He said, I will not do it for forty's sake. And he said, Let 
not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Mayhap there shall 
be thirty, or twenty or ten righteous ? And He said, I will 
not destroy it for teti's sake; and Abraham returned to his 
place. 

Let thy doors be wide open as a refuge ! fSayinjjs of the Fathers 1,5.] 
Thou that hearest prayer, to Thee shall all flesh come. — Ps. 65, 3. 



IL THE DESTRUCTION OF SODOM 
AND GOMORRAH. 

(1 Mos. 19.) 

The two messengers of judgment came to Sodom at even; 
and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom ; and when he saw them, 
he rose up to meet them ; and bowed himself with his face 
to the earth. And he said: Behold now, my lords, turn in, 
I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and 
to-morrow you may go on your way. And they said: Nay; we 
will abide in the street all night. But he pressed upon them 
greatly, and they entered into his house; and he made them 
a feast, and they did eat. But before they lay down, the men 
of Sodom compassed the house round, both old and young, 
all the people from every quarter. And called to Lot, and 
said to him: Where are the men who came in to thee this 
night ? Bring them out to us. Now Lot came out to them, 
and shut the door after him, and said: I pray you, brethren, 



GENESIS. 19 

Do no harm to these men, for therefore came they under the 
shadow of my roof. But they said: Stand back ! This man 
is come in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge; now 
will we deal worse with thee than with them. And they 
pressed sore upon Lot, and drew near to break the door. 
But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the 
house to them, and smote the men that were at the door with 
blindness, both small and great; so that they wearied them- 
selves to find the door. Then the men said to Lot: Hast 
thou here any besides ? Bring all thy kinsmen out of this 
place. For we will destroy it, because the outcry of their 
sins is w^axen great before the Lord. And Lot went out and 
spoke to his sons-in-law, and said: Up, get you out of this 
place, for the Lord will destroy this city; but he was as a 
mocker in their eyes. When the morning arose, the angels 
urged Lot, saying: Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daugh- 
ters, lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. But 
still he lingered, till seizing all by their hands, the Lord be- 
ing merciful to them, they brought them forth, and set them 
without the city. Now they said: Escape for thy life; look 
not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain: escape to 
the mountain, lest thou be consumed. Then the Lord rained 
upon Sod-om and Gomorrah brimstone and fire.* And He 
overthrew those cities, and that which grew upon the soil. 
But his wdfe, whose heart was still clinging to the lusts of 
Sodom, so that she followed unwillingly, looked back from 
behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.^ 

Behold, the righteous man is requited on earth ; much more the wicked 
man and sinner! — Prov. 11, 31. 



12. BIRTH OF ISAAC. EXPULSION OF HAGAR. 

(1 Mos. 21.) 

The Lord remembered Sarah as He had spoken, and at 
ninety years of age she bore a son, and he was called Isaac,^ 
that is every one who hears of it will laugh, 

1 By this rain of fire and brimstone even the soil, which abounded in asphalt 
[compare pzige 15] was set on fire, so that the entire valley was burned out and 
t'ank, and the Dead Sea took its place. The Dead Sea [usuaHy called by the Israel- 
ites, n]7'3n D', the Salt Sea] in the south-east of Palestine, very near to Jerusa- 
lem, is about forty miles long, and, on an average, nine miles broad It is sur- 
rounded on all sides by hills. The strand is bald and sterile, and everythin"- on it 
is covered with a crust of saltpetre. This is the result of the exhalations "of the 
waters of the sea. At the south-west corner a rock of salt, about five miles lono- 
but not very high, rears itself. It is called '• Oie hill of Sodom,:' °' 

2 \ben-Ezra supposed that she was not actually turned into one. but havin"- been 
killed and afterwards encrusted with salt, she resembled an actual statue of salt • 
just as even now. from the saline exhalation of the Dead Sea, objects near it 
are quickly covered with a crust of salt. 



20 GENESIS. 

When the child had grown and Avas weaned, Abraham made a great feast. 

And Sarah saw Ishraael, the son of Hagar, now a youth about sixteen 
years old, mocking Isaac. Sarah displeased with him, went in anger 
to her husband, and said : Drive out this bondwoman and her son ; 
for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even 
with Isaac. Abraham was grieved by this demand. But in the night 
God spoke to him and told him to do Avhat Sarah had said. Abraham 
then rose up early in the morning, took bread and a bottle of water, 
and gave it to Hagar for the journey through the desert, and she departed, 
and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba. She pursued her way 
until the water was all gone, and she laid the lad under one of the shrubs 
and left him there fainting and prosttate, threw herself down a bow-shot 
off, so as not to hear his cries, and lifted up her voice and Avept. Then an 
angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her : What ails 
thee, Hagar 1 fear not ; for God has heard the voice of the lad where he 
is. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold thy hand upon him, for I will make 
him a great nation. And now God opened her eyes, and she saw a well 
of water ; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the 
lad drink. And God was with the lad ; and he grew, and dwelt in the 
wilderness, and became an archer. His mother took him a wife out of 
the land of Egypt. 

Call upon Me in the day of trouble : I will rescue thee, and thou shalt 
glorify Me.— Ps. 50, 15. 



13. ABRAHAM PEOVED. 

(1 Mos. 22.) 

And it came to pass after these things, that God tempted 
Abraham, and said to him, Abraham! and he said: Behold, 
here I am. And God said : Take now thy son, thy only one, 
whom thou lovest, Isaac, and get thee into the land of 
Moriah,^ and offer him there for a burnt-oifering upon one of 
the mountains of which I will tell thee. And Abraham rose 
up early in the morning, saddled his ass, took two of his lads 
with him, and Isaac his son, prepared the wood for the burnt- 
offering, and rose up, and went to the place of which God 
had told him. On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, 
and saw the place afar off. Then he said to his lads: Abide 
you here with the ass; my son and I will go yonder and 
worship, and return to you. The two went on together, 
Isaac bearing the wood that was to consume the sacrifice, 
the father with the fire and the knife. So the two went 
up the mount, till Isaac broke the silence all at once, 
by crying in surprise: My father! And he said: Here 
am I, my son. Behold the fire and the wood, said the 
lad, but where is the lamb for the sacrifice? Our God 
will provide Himself a lamb, my son, was the father's 
answer. So the two went on together. "When they had' 

» The place on which Jerusalem stands was originally called the land qf Moriah. 



GENESIS. 21 

reached the top of the mountain, Abraham built an altar, 
laid the wood in order, bound Isaac his son, and laid him 
on the pile. But as he stretched out his hand to slay him, 
the angel of the Lord called to him out of heaven, and 
said: Abraham! Abraham! And he said: Here am I. And 
He said: Lay not thy hand upon the lad,* nor do him any 
harm; for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing, thou 
hast not withheld thy son, thy only one, from Me. 

And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and, lo! in the back- 
ground he perceived a ram, with his horns entangled in the 
brushwood. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered 
it in place of his son. Then the angel of the Lord called to 
Abraham out of heaven the second time, and said: By My- 
self have I sworn, saith the Lord, because thou hast done this 
thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thy only one, that I 
will bless thee, and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of 
heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea-shore, and all 
the peoples of the earth shall bless themselves in the name 
of thy descendants. 

Then Abraham returned to his lads, and they rose up and 
went together to Beer-sheba, and Abraham dwelt there. 

Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, 

and bow me before the high God? 
Shall I come before him with offerings, 

with bullocks of one year old '? 
Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, 

with countless rivers of oil 1 
Shall I give my first-born for my sin, 

my own child to obtain forgiveness ? 
No ! He has shown thee, O man, what is good, 

and what the Lord requires of thee. 
It is to do right, to hold justice dear, 

and to walk humbly with thy God. 

Micah. 6, 6, 7. 



14. SARAH'S DEATH AND BURIAL IN THE CAYE 
OF MACHPELAH. 

(1 Mos. 23.) 

Sarah was 127 years old, when she died in Kirjath-arha^ 
the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan; and Abraham 
mourned and wept for her. 

Then he spoke to the chiefs of the Hethites, to whom the country be- 
longed : I dwell among you as a stranger, and therefore possess no land ; 
but let me have a burying-place among you to bury my dead. 

1 Josephas thinks Isaac was now twenty-five years old. 



22 GENESIS. 

This request was favorably received by the Hethltes. Hear us, my 
Lord, they said, thou art a mighty prince among us : in the choice of our 
sepulchres bury thy dead ; for there is not one of us who would refuse 
thee his. 

Touched by theh* kindness Abraham bowed down before the people of 
the land. But he said, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead 
out of my sight, hear me, and entreat for me Ephron, the son of Zohar, 
that he may give me the Cave of Machpelah, which he has, for as much 
money as it is worth for a burying-place among you.^ 

Now Ephron being himself in the audience, answered at once in the 
hearing of all present : 

Nay, my lord, hear me : the field give I thee, and the cave that is 
therein, I give it tliee; bury thy dead. 

But Abraham bowed down himself and spoke to Ephron : I pray thee, 
hear me : I will give thee money for the field : take it of me, and I will 
bury my dead there. 

Upon which Ephron made the courtly answer : My lord, hearken to 
me : the land is worth four hundred shekels ^ of silver ; what is that betwixt 
me and thee ? bury therefore thy dead. 

So Abraham learned the value of the land, and at once weighed out 
to Ephron the silver which he had named, four hundi-ed shekels of silver, 
and so became the owner of the cave, and he made it his family burying- 
place, and there he buried Sarah. 

He who is greedy of gain troubles his own house ; but he who hates 
gifts shall live. — Prov. 15, 27, 



15. EEBEKAH— ABRAHAM'S DEATH. 

(1 Mos. 24.) 

Abraham was an old man, far gone in days; and the Lord 
had blessed him in all things. One day he said to Eliezer, 
his chief servant, who had the superintendence of all his 
affairs: I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of 
heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a 
wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites among 
whom I dwell: But to my land and to my kindred shalt thou 
go and take thence a wife for him. And the servant said to 
him: Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow 
me to this land: must I needs bring back thy son to the land 
from whence thou camest ? Abraham answered and said to 
him: Beware thou, that thou bring not my son thither back. 
The Lord God of heaven, Who took me from my father's 
house, and Who spoke to me saying: To thy seed will I give 
this land, He shall send His angel before thee and will pro- 
vide for this too. In case the woman do not wish to fol- 
low thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath. The 
servant then swore to him concerning that matter and set 
out on his journey, taking ten camels laden with goods, and 

* The burial of the dead in cavee was customary in this Eastern land. 

2 The Phekel was originally a weight, not a coin ; 400 shekels = about $218. 




Nose, Ear, and Head Ornaments (p 23). 

Levi/ Type Photo-En^. Co Bnlto. 



GENESIS. 23 

went to Mesopotamia^ to the city of Nahor. There he 
made the camels kneel down, without the city by a well 
of water, at the time of the evening when the maidens 
that draw water come out. And he said: Lord, God of 
my master Abraham, I pray Thee, send me good speed this 
day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. Here I 
am standing by the well of water, and the daughters of the 
men of the city are coming out to draw water; let it 
come to pass that the damsel to whom I shall say: Let 
down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she 
shall say: Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also; let 
the same be she that Thou hast appointed for Thy servant 
Isaac, and by her shall I know that Thou hast shown kind- 
ness to my master. 

God heard the prayer, for the last words were still on 
Eliezer's lips when lo, Rebekah came out, who was born to 
Bethuel, the son of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her 
pitcher upon her shoulder. And the damsel was very fair 
to look upon, unmarried; she went down to the well, and 
filled her pitcher, and came up. Now the servant ran to 
meet her, and said: Let me now drink a little water out of 
thy pitcher. And she said: Drink, my lord! and she hasted, 
and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him 
drink. As soon as he was refreshed she saw the camels and 
said: I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have 
done drinking. And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher 
into the trough, and ran again to the well to draw water, 
and drew for all his camels. Eliezer, wondering at her, 
stood silent, to know whether the Lord had made prosperous 
his way or not. After the watering of the camels was over, 
he took a golden nose-ring of half a shekel, and two golden 
armlets of ten shekels weight, and placed them upon her in 
return for her kindness. He then addressed her again: Tell 
me maiden. Whose daughter art thou ? is there now room 
in thy father's house for us to lodge in ? And she said to 
him: I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah and 
Nahor. She said, moreover, to him: "We have both straw 
and provender enough, and room to lodge in. And the man 
bowed down his head, worshipped the Lord, and said: 
Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who has 
not withdrawn from him His mercy and His truth : I being in 
the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's rela- 
tions. And the damsel hastened home to tell them all that 
had happened. 

Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban. "When 

1 Mesopotamia the country between the two fivers^ Euphrates and Tigris. 



24 GENESIS. 

he saw tlie ring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and 
when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying: 
Thus spoke the man to me; he hurried to the well and 
found Eliezer with his subordinates and camels still waiting 
there. Then he said: Come in, thou blessed of the Lord, 
wherefore standest thou without ? for I have prepared the 
house, and room for the camels. Eliezer accepted his hos- 
pitality. He was soon in Bethuel's house, and when there 
was set meat before him to eat, he said : I will not eat until 
I have told my errand. And he related about his master's 
wealth, and that he had a son born in his old age, and what 
had passed between him and his master about Isaac's mar- 
riage, and what he had prayed for, and what happened at the 
well. And in conclusion he said: Now if you will deal 
kindly and truly with my master, tell me ; and if not, tell 
me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left. Then 
Laban and Bethuel answered and said: The thing proceeds 
from the Lord: we cannot speak to thee bad or good. Be- 
hold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her 
be wife to thy master's son, as the Lord has spoken. On 
receiving this reply, Eliezer fell down upon the earth to give 
God thanks. Then he opened all his treasures and distrib- 
uted costly gifts to the bride, and to her brother and mother. 
Then they took their evening meal. 

On the next morning, Rebekah was blessed by her rela- 
tives, and, attended by her- nurse and maids, she followed 
Eliezer, who related to Isaac the strange history of his jour- 
ney. Whereupon Isaac brought Rebekah in to his mother 
Sarah's tent, and she became his wife; and he loved her: 
and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. 

Abraham had attained the good old age of 175 years 
when he died . The two brothers, Isaac and Ishmael, buried 
their father by the side of Sarah in the cave of Mach- 
pelah. 

Grace is deceitful, and beauty vain ; but the woman that fears the Lord, 
she shall be praised. — Prov. 31, 30. ' 

The memory of the just is blessed. — Prov. 10, 7. 



16. JACOB AND ESAU. 

(1 Mos. 25, 26.) 

Isaac was forty years old, when he took Rebekah to wife. 
After twenty years there were born to them twin sons: 
Esau ^ and Jacob.* Esau received his name from his being 



nK';r "^'pj;: 



GENESIS. 25 

at his birth covered, as it were, with a haiey cloak. "When 
Esau and Jacob grew up to be men Esau was a man of 
the field, a hunter; but Jacob, whose name means the 
HEEL-HOLDER, suppLANTER, was a scdatc, pcaccful man, liv- 
ing in his tents like a shepherd. Esau was the favorite 
of his father, who was fond of venison; and Rebekah 
loved Jacob. One day when Esau came home hungry from 
the chase, he found Jacob busy with the preparation of some 
red-looking lentil porridge. Esau asked for it, and said: Let 
me, I pray thee, devour some of that red, for I'm tired ! 
Therefore was his name called '^ Udom,^'^ that is red. But 
Jacob said: Sell me to-day thy birth-right.^ Esau, longing 
for the food, said in reply: I may be dead to-morrow ! Why 
should I trouble myself about my birth-right ? And when 
Jacob said: Swear to me this day, Esau swore to him; thus 
he sold his birth-right to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau 
bread and pottage of lentils; and he did eat and drink, and 
rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birth- 
right. 

Isaac led a wandering life, Hke his father Abraham. He 
went into the land of the Phihstines ^ and dwelt in Gerar. 
But by the jealousy of the Phihstines he was obliged 
to leave Gerar, and he journeyed to Beer-Sheba, where he 
hved unmolested. Here the Lord appeared to him, and said, 
I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am 
with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my 
servant Abraham's sake. And he built an altar there, and 
called upon the name of the Lord. 

There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way to 
death.— Proy. 14, 12. 



17. THE BLESSING OF ISAAC. 

(1 Mos. 27.) 

When Isaac had grown old, and his eyes were dim in see- 
ing, he called Esau, his elder son, and said: My son, behold 
now, I am old, I know not the day of my death. Take, 
therefore, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, 

2 To the first-bom son belonged many privileges : he was next to his parents the 
head of the family; he had a double portion of the inheritance. Esau was then 
by right of birth, the head of the chasen family ; on him devolved the blessing of 
Abraham, that " in his seed all families of the earth should be blessed." 

^ Philistia, a narrow strip of land along the sea-coast, in the south-west of 
Canaan ; Gerar was one of its cities. 



26 GENESIS. 

and go out to the field, and hunt for me some venison, and 
make a savory dish, such as I love, and bring it to me, that 
I may eat, that my soul may bless thee before I die. So Esau 
went out to hunt. But Rebekah had listened when Isaac 
spoke. She related to Jacob what she had heard and 
then she said: Now, my son ! obey my voice, according 
to that which I command thee. Go to the flocks, and 
fetch me thence two good kids of the goats; and I will 
make of them a savory dish for thy father, such as he loves. 
And thou shalt bring it to him, that he may eat, and bless 
thee before his death. Jacob objected to that, saying to his 
mother: Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am 
a smooth man: My father peradventure will feel me, and I 
shall be in his eyes a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse up- 
on me, and not a blessing. But his mother removed this 
scruple by saying: May the curse fall upon me, my son ! only 
do as I tell thee. So Jacob allowed himself to be persuaded. 
The meal was soon ready. Now Rebekah took goodly gar- 
ments of her elder son Esau, and put them upon Jacob her 
younger son: Moreover she put the skins of the kids of the 
goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck; and 
gave him the savory dish. 

Thus prepared, he came to his father, and said: My father! 
And he said: Here am I, my son. Who art thou ? And Ja- 
cob said: I am Esau, thy first-born; I have done as thou badest 
me : rise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul 
may bless me. But how is it that thou hast found it so quickly, 
my son ? asked Isaac. Because the Lord thy God prospered 
. me. Come near, said the blind man, suspiciously, and let me 
feel thee, to be sure that thou really art Esau. And he felt 
him and said: The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are 
Esau's hands. And again, doubting still, he asks: Art thou 
indeed my son Esau ? And Jacob answered: lam: Now 
when he had thus been assured, he ate of his meal and drank 
of his wine. Then he said to Jacob, Come near, now, and 
kiss me, my son ! And he came near and kissed him: and 
he smelled the odor of the hunter's garments, — aU his doubts 
disappeared, and he blessed him, saying: 

" God shall jjive thee of the dew of heaven, 

And of the fatness of the earth, 
And abundance of corn and wine ! 

Peoples shall be thy servants, 
Nations shall boAV before thee ! 

Be thou thy brother's ruler, 
Let thy mother's son foil down before thee. 

He who curses thee shall be cui-sed ; 
He who blesses thee blessed." 

Jacob had hardly gone out from his father's presence when 



GENESIS. 27 

Esau came in. He also had made a savory dish and bring- 
ing it to Isaac, said: Let my father rise and eat of his son's 
venison, that thy soul may bless me. Who art thou ? ex- 
claimed the old man. I am thy son, thy first-born, Esau, 
was the reply. And Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said: 
"Who then was he, that has hunted venison and brought it 
me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and blessed 
him ? yea, he shall be blessed ! When Esau heard the 
words of his father, he cried with an exceeding great and 
bitter cry and said to his father: Bless me too, my father ! 
Alas ! exclaimed Isaac, Thy brother has come with subtlety, 
and has taken away thy blessing. And Esau cried out: Has 
he received the name deceiver (Jacob) from the fact that he 
has twice deceived me ? First he took my birth-right, and 
now he has taken my blessing ? my father, he went on, 
hast thou but one blessing, hast thou no blessing left for me ? 

father ! bless me too ! As Esau burst into tears, his father 
laid his hand upon his head and said: 

Away from the fatness of earth shall thy home be, 

Away from the dew of heaven. 

By thy sword shalt thou live, 

And thy brother shalt thou sei-ve ; 

But it shall be, when thou rovest about, 

Then thou shalt break his yoke. 

And Esau hated his brother for what he had done, but he 
loved his father and determined to wait until after his death 
and then to destroy his J)rother. But when Eebekah was 
told of it, she sent and called Jacob and said to him: Be- 
hold, thy brother Esau comforts himseK concerning thee, 
purposing to slay thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my 
voice: Fly to Laban my brother, to Haran; and tarry with 
him some time, until thy brother's anger turn away from 
thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him : then 

1 will send and fetch thee thence. Why should I lose both 
my sons at once ? Isaac approved the plan, and before Ja- 
cob left he bade him farewell, and gave him a charge, not to 
take one of the Canaanite women for a wife. He finally 
renewed his blessing at parting. 

Ye shall not deal falsely, neither lie one to another. — 3 Mos. 19, 11. 

Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart, thou shalt not avenge, 
nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people.— 3 Mos. 19, 17, 
18. 

18. JACOB'S JOURNEY TO MESOPOTAMIA. 

(1 Mos. 28.) 

Jacob journeyed from Beer-sheba, and came to a place near 
the Canaanite city Luz. Here he had to spend the night, for 



28 GENESIS. 

the sun went down, so lie took one of the stones of the place, 
put it for his pillow, fell asleep and dreamt. In his dream 
he saw a ladder resting upon the earth, with the top reaching 
to heaven; and upon it angels of God going up and down, 
and the Lord himself standing above it, and saying: I am 
the LoKD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: 
the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy 
seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth; and 
thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to 
the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall 
all the families of the earth be blessed. And behold, I am 
with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, 
and will bring thee again into this land ; for I will not leave 
thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. 
"When Jacob awoke from his sleep he said: What an awful 
place is this! It is no less than a house of God! it is a gate 
of heaven ! Surely the Lord is in this place; I knew not 
that. 

And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the 
stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pil- 
lar,' and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the 
name of that place which had hitherto been known as Luz, 
Beth-El, that is, God^s House. At the same time he made a 
vow, saying: If God will be with me, and will keep me in 
the way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment 
to put on, if I return to my father's house in peace, and the 
Lord will be my God, then shall this stone, which I have set 
for a pillar be God's house: and of all that Thou shalt give 
me, I will surely give the tenth to Thee.^ 

From heaven the Lord looks down, He sees all the children of men. 
— Ps. 33, 13. 

Give me neither poverty nor riches ; feed me with the food which is 
needful for me, — Prov. 30, 8. 



19. JACOB'S SOJOUEN WITH LAB AN. HIS MAR- 
RIAGE. 

(1 Mos. 29-30, 24.) 

Then Jacob went on gladly to Haran, or the Land of the 
children of the East, as it lay east of Canaan. When he 
reached it, he came upon some flocks of sheep and goats 
pasturing round a well in a plain. Upon the well's mouth 
was a great stone, to keep the water clean; and when all the 

1 A pillar was probably tbe most ancient and simplest remembrancer of a 
religious vow. 

'^ Devote it to holy purposes, help the poor and sick, build altars, etc. 



GENESIS. 29 

flocks were gathered tliitlier they rolled the stone from the 
well's mouth and watered the sheep. On coming near this 
well, Jacob addressed civilly the shepherds and asked them, 
where they came from. "We are men of Haran, was the 
reply. Know you Laban, the grandson of Nahor ? "We 
know him. Is he well? He is well, and behold, Rachel his 
daughter is just coming with the sheep. Then Jacob said: 
Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should 
be gathered together: water the sheep, and go and feed them. 
And they said ; We cannot, until all the flocks be gathered 
together, and till they roll the stone from the well's mouth, 
and then we water the sheep. He was still talking with 
them, when behold Rachel drew near with her father's flocks. 
No sooner did Jacob see her than he went near to the mouth 
of the well and rolled away the stone and then watered the 
flocks. Rachel looked on in amazement, which soon made 
way, however, for surprise, when the stranger came up 
to her greeting her with a kiss, and bursting into tears of 
joy, made himself known as her cousin, the son of Rebekah. 
She ran and told her father. 

And it came to pass when Laban heard the tidings of Ja- 
cob his sister's son, that he hastened to meet him, embraced 
him, kissed him, and brought him to his house. And after 
having abode witlhi Laban the space of a month, the latter 
said to Jacob: Because thou art my kinsman shouldest thou 
therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages 
be ? Now as Laban had two daughters, Jacob offered to 
serve him seven years for Rachel, the younger of them, 
whom he loved and who was far more beautiful than her 
sister Leah, whose eyes were dull. Laban agreed. He 
Would rather give his daughter to him than to a stranger.^ 
Jacob served seven years for Rachel; and he valued the la- 
bor of so long a time, as though it were that of but a few 
days, so great was his love to her. 

Now Jacob said to Laban: give me my wife, for my days 
are fulfilled. And Laban gathered together all the men of 
the place, and made a wedding-feast. And it came to pass, 
that Laban taking advantage of the long and close veil worn 
by the eastern maidens on their marriage day, brought Leah 
to him instead of Rachel. And Laban gave to his daughter 
Leah, Zilpah his maid, for a handmaid. And in the morn- 
ing Jacob said to Laban: What is this thou hast done 
to me ? did not I serve with thee for Rachel ? wherefore 
then hast thou deceived me ? And Laban said: It must not 

1 It is still the custom with some Eastern tribes, to prefer marrying among their 
own kindred. 

a.* 



30 GENESIS. 

be so done in our country, to give the younger before tbe 
first-born. Celebrate the marriage feast for a week with 
Leah, and after that I will give thee Rachel also for the ser- 
vice which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years. 
And Jacob did so, and he gave him Rachel his daughter to 
wife also ^ and gave to Rachel, Bilhah to be her maid. 

Leah had six sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Is- 
SACHAR, and Zebulun, and, last of all, a daughter, Dinah. 
Moreover, the two maids, Bilhah and Zilpah, bore children 
to Jacob; the sons of Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali; those 
of Zilpah, Gad and Asher. After a long time God remem- 
bered Rachel and gave her a son, whom she called Joseph.^ 

He that works with a slack hand becomes poor ; but the hand of the 
diliorent makes rich. — Prov. 10, 4. 



20. JACOB'S FLIGHT. LABAN'S PURSUIT 
AFTER HIM. 

(1 Mos. 30-31.) 

And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that 
Jacob said to Laban: Send me away, that I may go to my 
own place, and to my country. And Laban answered: I pray 
thee, if I have found favor in thine eyes, tarry; for I have 
learned by experience that the Lord has blessed me for thy 
sake. And he said further: Appoint me thy wages, and I 
will give it. Jacob now declared that though he was quite 
aware that while he had had charge of his uncle's flocks they 
had increased greatly, yet he would be content with but 
a small reward, — all the speckled and spotted sheep and 
goats should be his share. Laban agreed, and as soon as 
the animals were sorted, he separated his flocks so far from 
those of his son-in-law that it was impossible they should get 
mixed. And Jacob's flocks grew to be a great many, so that 
after a, while, he was rich, and he had men-servants and 
maid-servants, camels and asses and herds of cattle of which 
his sons took care. But Laban's sons could not bear the 
sight of Jacob's prosperity, and he heard them speaking un- 
kindly of him. They said: Jacob has taken away all that 
was our father's; and of that which was our father's has he 
gotten all these riches. Jacob also beheld the countenance 
of Laban, and behold, it was not toward him as formerly. 
Then the Lord said to Jacob: Return to the land of thy 
fathers, and to thy house ; and I will be with thee. 

» It became unlawful to have two eistcrs for M-ives at the same time. 



GENESIS. 31 

So Jacob made ready to go, and one day, when Laban was 
gone away to shear his sheep, Jacob set his wives and chil- 
dren upon camels and fled with all that he had. He arose, 
and passed over the river Euphrates, and set his journey to- 
ward the Mount Gilead. ^ On the third day it was told La- 
ban, that Jacob was fled. Forthwith he took his kinsmen 
with him, and pursued after him seven days' journey; and 
they overtook him in the Mount Gilead. But God came to 
Laban in a dream by night, and said: Take heed that thou 
speak not to Jacob either good or bad. 

And Laban said to Jacob : What hast thou done, that thou hast stolen 
away unawares to me, and carried away my daughters, as captives of the 
sword 1 Wherefore didst thou flee away secretly, and steal away from 
me, and didst not tell me, that I rriight have given thee a convoy with 
mirth, and with songs, Avith tabret, and with harp ? Neither hast thou 
sutfered me to kiss my grandchildren and my daughters ; thou hast 
noAV done foolishly in so doing. And Jacob answered, and said to Laban : 
What is my trespass 1 what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued 
after me? For twenty years I have served thee, taking care of thy sheep 
and goats. That which was torn of beasts, I brought not to thee; I must 
make satisfaction of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen 
by day, or stolen by night. Thus I was ; in the day the drought con- 
sumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from my 
eyes. 2 Thus have I been twenty years in thy house ; I served thee four- 
teen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle ; and thou 
hast changed my wages ten times. Except the God of my father, the God 
of Abraham, and the Fear of Isaac ^ had been with me, surely thouhadst 
sent me away now empty. God has seen my aflliction and the wearisome 
labor of my hands and judged thee yesternight. And Laban answered, and 
spoke kindly to Jacob : Come thou, let us make a covenant of peace, I and 
thou, and let it be for a witnessHbetween me and thee. And Jacob took a 
stone, and set it up for a pillar. And Jacob said to his kinsmen : Gather 
stones ; and they took stones, and made a heap. After that Jacob pre- 
pared a feast in celebration of the covenant. Early in the moi-ning Laban 
rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them ; and 
Laban departed, and returned to his place. 

When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be 
at peace with him. — Pro v. 16, 17. 



21. THE NAME ISRAEL. MEETING AND 
RECONCILIATION WITH ESAU. 

(1 Mos. 32.) 

Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother, to 
the land of Seir,* the country o± Edom. And he commanded 
them, saying: Thus shall ye speak to my lord Esau: Thy ser- 

1 At some distance east of the Jordan. 

2 In the East it is common for extremely hot days to be succeeded by very cold 
nights. 

3 The ohject of Isaac's religious fear and veneration. 

* A mountain to the ^outh and south-west of the Dead Sea, m the land of Edom. 



32 GENESIS. 

vant Jacob says thus: T have sojourned witli Laban, and 
stayed there until now ; and I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and 
men-servants, and women-servants; and I have sent to tell my 
lord, that I may find grace in thy sight. And the messengers 
returned to Jacob, saying: We came to thy brother Esau, and 
also he comes to meet thee, and four hundred men with him. 
By this information Jacob was greatly afraid, and distressed. 
He then divided the people that were with him, and the flocks, 
and herds, and the camels, into two bands; for he thought, 
even if Esau attacks and destroys one of them, yet the other 
may escape. 

When he had completed these precautionary arrangements, 
he prayed: God of my father Abraham, and God of my 
father Isaac, Loed who saidst to me: Return to thy country, 
and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: I am un- 
worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, 
Thou hast shown to Thy servant; for with my staff alone I 
crossed this river Jordan and now I have grown into two 
companies. O rescue me from the power of my brother, 
from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he will come and 
smite me, and the mother with the children. 

Next morning he prepared a rich present for Esau his 
brother, in order to appease him. This present consisted of 
numerous droves of cattle, flocks of sheep and goats, camels 
with their young, herds of bulls and cows, and asses with 
their foals. 

Hundreds of them were separated into droves, following 
one another at intervals. The servants under whose charge 
these herds were placed, were bidden to respond to Esau's 
inquiry in the same words: They are thy servant Jacob's; it 
is a present sent to my lord Esau, and behold, he is also be- 
hind us. 

When it was night again, Jacob caused his wives and his 
children to pass over the ford of Jabbok.^ He remained to 
the last, that he might see all his family pass safely through 
the ford; thus he was left alone; and lo ! there wrestled a 
man with him, until the breaking of the day. And when 
he saw that he could not overcome the patriarch, he grasped 
his hip, twisted it out of joint as he wrestled with him, and 
said: Let me go; for it is day already. But Jacob answered: 
No ! not till thou hast blessed me. Then his adversary 
asked him: What is thy name ? and on being told that it was 
Jacob, he said: Henceforward thou shalt no longer be called 
Jacob, but Israel ^ (striver-of-God), for thou hast striven with 

>A brook on the east of Jordan, falling into it a little south of the Sea ot Tibe- 
rias. It is now called Zerka, i. c., blue. 



GENESIS. 33 

God and man and given proof of thy might. Then Jacob 
asked him, and said: Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And 
he said: Wherefore dost thou ask after my name ? And he 
blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place 
Peniel, that is, Face-of-God; for, said he, I have seen God face 
to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over the 
Jabbok the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. 
Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the hip sinew of 
any animal. 

When Jacob had reached the further side of the Jabbok, 
he saw Esau, and with him four hundred men, drawing near. 
Then he passed over before his wives and children, and 
bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near 
to his brother. Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, 
fell on his neck, kissed him: and they wept. Who are 
those with thee ? asked Esau, glancing at Jacob's wives and 
their children. These are the children whom God has gra- 
ciously given thy servant, was Jacob's humble answer. Then 
the handmaidens came near, they and their children, and they 
bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children came 
near, and bowed themselves; and after came Joseph near and 
Each el, and they bowed themselves. What meanest thou by 
all this drove which I met ? It is a present for thee, an- 
swered Jacob, that thou mayest be gracious to me. I have 
enough, my brother, replied Esau; keep what thou hast to 
thyself. Jacob said: I pray thee if now I have found grace 
in thy sight, then receivoTiiy present at my hand: for I have 
seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of God, and 
thou receivest me so kindly. Take, I pray thee, my blessing 
that is brought to thee; because God has dealt graciously 
with me, and because I have enough: and he urged him, and 
he took it. 

Then Esau returned on his way to Seir, and Jacob came 
safely to Shechem} From here Jacob journed toward Beth- 
el, where he built an altar, and offered up a sacrifice to the 
Lord. Hence he journeyed southwards, and when there was 
but a Httle way to come to EjjJirath, which is Beth-Iehem,^ Ra- 
chel bore him another son, whose name was called Benjamin. 
But before they came to Beth-lehem Rachel died, and they 
buried her on the way there. And Jacob set a pillar upon 
her grave, which pillar stood there for hundreds of years. 

At length Jacob reached the old station of Mamre beside 
Hebron. Here Isaac died at the age of one hundred and 

' Shechem, city in Mount Ephraim, about seven miles south of Samariah. Now 
Nablom, or JVablus. 
2 About six miles south of Jerusalem. 



34 GENESIS* 

eighty years, old and full of days, and his sons, Jacob and 
Esau, buried him. 

Say not, " As he has done to me, so wall I do to him ; I will render to 
the man according to hia doings." — Prov. 24, 29. 



22. JOSEPH SOLD INTO EGYPT. C. E. 1729. 

(1 Mob. 87.) 

Israel's son Joseph^ a lad of seventeen, was feeding the 
flock with his brothers, and he occasionally told their father, 
when they did anything wrong. Israel loved Joseph more 
than all his children, because he was born to him in his old 
age; and he made him a coat of many colors. On account 
of all that his brothers hated him, and could not speak a 
friendly word to him. 

Once Joseph had a dream which he told his brothers. I 
dreamt, said he, that we were all binding sheaves in the 
field; and lo 1 my sheaf arose, and stood upright; and all 
your sheaves came round it and fell down before it. Indeed ! 
exclaimed his brothers, Shalt thou reign over us ? Shalt 
thou have the rule over us ? Shortly after that he had yet 
another dream, and told it his brothers, saying: I have 
dreamt a dream more; and behold, the sun and the moon 
and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. He told this 
dream to his father too, but even he rebuked him and said: 
What ! shall I and thy mother,^ and thy brothers — shall we 
come to do homage to thee ? But while his brothers envied 
and hated him the more, his father guarded the words, and 
pondered over them deeply. 

Now once upon a time his brothers went to feed their fa- 
ther's flock in Shechem. And Israel said to Joseph: Go, I 
pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brothers, and well 
with the flocks, and bring me word again. So he went and 
found his brothers in Dothaii.^ When they sav/ him afar oif, 
they conspired against him to kill him. There's our dreamer 
coming ! said they. Let us kill him, and throw his body 
down a well, and say that he has been torn by a wild beast. 
Then we shall see what comes of all his dreams. 

But one of them, Reuben, sought to deliver him out of 
their hands, and said: Shed no blood, but cast him into this 
well, and lay no hand upon him. Thus he hoped to save his 
life, and then to bring him back to his father. They con- 
cluded to do so, and now when Joseph came, they stript him 

* Rachel, who was neither forgotten nor lost. 

^Dothan, about twelve miles to tlic N. of Sebaste (Samaria). 




Joseph Sold into Egypt (p. 34). 

Levy Type Photo-Eng.Co., Baltimore. 



GENESIS. 35 

out of his splendid robe, and threw him down a dry well, 
where he would die of hunger and thirst. 

And they had just sat down to their meal, when they 
lifted up their eyes and saw a caravan drawing near. It 
consisted of some Ishmaelites,^ who were on their way to 
Egypt with balsam and spices. As soon as he saw them 
coming Judah cried out: Brothers! what gain is there if we 
slay Joseph? Remember he is our brother and our flesh 
after all. Come and let us sell him to these Ishmaelites. 
All but Reuben, who was just now absent, agreed to this prop- 
osition, and accordingly they drew Joseph out of the well, and 
sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver,'^ who 
then departed, taking Joseph with them to Egypt. 

When Reuben returned to the well and did not find Joseph 
there, he was much distressed, and rent his clothes. The lad 
is not there, he cried, and I, whither shall I go? The others, 
however, took Joseph's coat, and after dipping it in the blood 
of a kid, cruelly showed it to their father and said: This 
have we found. Is it not Joseph's coat? And he recognized 
it, and cried out in dismay: It is my son's coat ! a wild 
beast has devoured him: Joseph is torn! torn! And Jacob 
rent his clothes, and put sackcloth^ upon his loins, and 
mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters 
stood round him to console him, but he would not accept any 
comfort, and kept repeating : I shall go down into the grave 
to my son mourning ! Thus was Joseph bewailed by his 
father. 

Many are the afflictions of the righteous ; but the Lord delivers him 
out of them all.— Ps. 34, 19. 



23. JOSEPH IN POTIPHAR'S HOUSE AND IN 
PRISON. 

(1 Mos. 39.) 

Joseph was brought down to Eg3rpt: and Potiphar, an 
officer of Pharaoh, commander of the royal life-guard, 
bought him of the hands of the Ishmaelites. But the Lord 
was with Joseph, and made all that he did prosper in his 
hand. And when his master saw this, Joseph found grace 
in his sight; and he made him overseer over his house, and 
all that he had he put into his hand. Moreover he showed 

1 Equivalent to Arabs. Called after Ishmael, Abraham's son by Hagar. 

2 The usual price of a slave (3 Mos. 27, 5), about fourteen and a half dollars. 

3 Sack cloth was a dark, coarse kind of cloth which persons wore to show they 
were in trouble. 



36 GENESIS. 

himself deserving of this confidence in other respects too by 
resisting a sore temptation. For Potiphar's wife let her eye 
fall upon the comely slave and endeavored to persuade him 
to do wrong. But he refused, saying to her: My master has 
entrusted all to me, neither has he kept back anything from 
me, but you, because you are his wife. How should I do 
such great wickedness, then, and sin against God ! It was 
of no avail. For one day, when Joseph came into the house 
to do his business, she caught hold of his outer garment, and 
as he did not wish to be found in company with so wicked a 
woman, he left his garment in her hand, and fled out of the 
house. The woman full of rage called to the men of her 
house and said: See! Potiphar has brought in a Hebrew 
to us to mock us. He came in to me and attempted to seduce 
me, and when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, 
he left his garment with me, and fled and got him out. And 
when his master heard these words of his wife, he took 
Joseph and put him into the prison, a place where the state 
prisoners were bound. 

But the Lord was also here with Joseph, showed him 
mercy, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the 
prison, so that he committed to Joseph's hand all the pris- 
oners that were in the prison. The keeper of the prison 
looked not to any thing that was under his hand ; because 
the Lord was with Joseph and all that he did, the Lord 
made it prosper. 

Through the fear of the Lord men depart from evil. — Prov. 16, 6. 



24. JOSEPH AS INTERPRETER OF BREAMS. 

(1 Mos. 40.) 

And it came to pass after these things that the butler of 
the king of Egypt and his baker had oifended their lord, the 
king of Egypt. And Pharaoh was wroth against them and 
ordered to put them in ward in the house of the captain of 
the life-guard, the place where Joseph was bound. The cap- 
tain of the guard charged Joseph with them, to serve them; 
and they continued a season in ward. 

Now in one and the same night both of them dreamt 
dreams which seemed to them full of significance. When 
Joseph came in to them in the morning and saw that they 
were sad, he asked for the cause of their sadness. "VVe 
have both of us been dreaming, was the reply, and we can- 
not tell what our dreams mean, or who can interpret them 
for us. Do not interpretations belong to God? said Joseph. 



GENESIS. 37 

May not He send you an answer even by my lips ? Tell me 
then, I pray you. Then the butler told his dream to Joseph, 
and said to him: In my dream, behold, a vinetree was 
before me, with three branches. I saw it spring up and blos- 
som and form clusters of ripe fruit. And Pharaoh's cup 
was in my hand: and I took the grapes, and pressed them 
into Pharaoh's cup, and presented it to the King. And 
Joseph said to him: This is the interpretation of it: The 
three branches signify three days. Within three days more 
Pharaoh will lift up thy head, and restore thee to thy place; 
then thou shalt deliver again Pharaoh's cup into his hand, 
after the former manner when thou wast his butler. And 
then he added: When it is well with thee, think of me and 
show kindness, I pray thee, to me, and make mention of me 
to Pharaoh, that he may release me from this place. For 
indeed, I was carried away secretly and by force out of the 
land where the Hebrews live, and here also have I done 
nothing wrong to deserve to be shut up here. 

Now when the chief baker saw that the interpretation was 
good, he said to Joseph: I also had in my dream three bas- 
kets of white bread on my head: In the uppermost basket 
there was of all manner of bake-meats for Pharaoh: and the 
birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head. And 
Joseph answered, and said: This is the interpretation there- 
of: The three baskets are three days: Within three days 
more Pharaoh will lift up thy head from off thee, and shall 
hang thee on a tree ; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from 
thee. And it came true, as Joseph said. On the third day, 
which was Pharaoh's birth-day, he made a feast to all his 
servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and 
the head of the chief baker among his servants; and he 
restored the chief butler to his butlership, so that he gave 
again the cup into Pharaoh's hand; but he hanged the chief 
baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. Yet the chief 
butler did not remember Joseph, but forgot all about him. 

It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. — 
Ps. 118, 8. 



25, JOSEPH INTERPRETS PHARAOH'S DREAMS. 

(1 Mos. 41.) 

Two years more passed away, and still Joseph remained in 

prison. Then Pharaoh himself dreamt a dream which filled 

him with wonder and awe. He was standing by the river 

Nile. And behold, there came up out of the river seven 

4 



38 GENESIS. 

COWS, fine in appearance and fat in flesh, and they grazed in 
the reedgrass. After them came up out of the river seven 
other cows, bad in appearance and lean in flesh. The King 
had never seen their hke for badness. And these went up 
to the fat ones that came out first and ate them up, all seven 
of them, but yet they were still as thin as ever themselves. 
And Pharaoh awoke. And he slept and dreamt a second 
time: and behold, seven ears of corn came up on one stalk, 
strong and good. And behold, seven ears thin and parched 
by the east^ wind sprung up after them. And the seven 
thin ears devoured the seven strong and full ears. And 
Pharaoh awoke and behold, it was a dream. Terrified and 
disturbed, the King next morning summoned all the magi- 
cians ^ of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and told them 
Hs dreams; but not one of them could give an interpretation. 
Now the chief butler suddenly bethought himself of Joseph 
and he said to Pharaoh: I remember my faults this day: Pha- 
raoh was angry with his servants, and put me in ward in the 
captain of the guard's house, both me, and the chief baker: 
And we dreamt a dream in one night, I and he. And there 
was with us a Hebrew youth, a servant to the chief of the 
guard, and we told him and he interpreted to us our dreams. 
And as he interpreted to us so it was: me he restored to my 
office, and him he hanged. Then Pharaoh sent and called 
for Joseph, and they brought him quickly out of the prison, 
and he shaved himself,^ and put on other clothes and came 
to Pharaoh. Pharaoh said to Joseph: I have dreamt a 
dream, and there is none who can interpret it: and I have 
heard of thee that thou understandest a dream to interpret 
it. Joseph answered. It is not in me ; God shall give Pha- 
raoh an answer of peace. The King then related his dreams, 
upon which Joseph said: The dream of Pharaoh is one: God 
has shown to Pharaoh what He is about to do. The seven 
good cows are seven years; and the seven good ears are 
seven years: the dream is one. And the seven thin and ill- 
favored cows that came up after them are seven years; and 
the seven empty ears, parched by the east wind shall be sev- 
en years of famine. This is the thing which I have spoken 
to Pharaoh: what God is about to do He has shown to Pha- 
raoh. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty 
throughout all the land of Egypt: and there will arise after 
them seven years of famine; and all the plenty will be for- 

^The south-east wind, which blows from the desert of Arabia (Chamsiu), is so 
parching as to destroy the grass entirely, if it blows very long. 

2 Learned priests, who occupied themselves with the sacred arts, the interpreta- 
tion of dreams, and the foretelling of events. 

8 The Egyptians cut both hair and beard close, unless they were in mourning for 
relations. 



GENESIS. 39 

gotten in tlie land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume 
the land. 

As to the repetition of the dream, it is because the thing 
is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass. 
Now therefore let Pharaoh look out for an intelligent and 
wise man, and set him over the land of Egypt. Let him ap- 
point officers over the land, who shall take up the fifth part 
of the produce in the seven years of plenty, and keep it in 
store till the years of scarcity, so that the people may not 
starve. These words were good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and 
in the eyes of all his servants. And Pharaoh said: Can we 
find such a one as this is, a man in whom the spirit of God is ? 
And then addressing Joseph, he said: Since God has taught 
thee all this, there is none intelligent and wise like thyself; 
thou shalt be over my house, and according to thy word 
shall all my people be ruled : only in the throne will I be 
greater than thou. And Pharoah took off his ring ^ from his 
hand, and put it upon Joseph's hand, and arrayed him in 
vestures of fine linen,- and put a gold chain about his neck. 
And he made him to ride in the second chariot, and ordered 
to cry before him; Bow the kneeP thus he made him ruler 
over all the land of Egypt. Then the king bestowed upon 
him the glorious Egyptian name of Zaphen^ th-paneah (Res- 
cuer OF THE World), and he gave him to wife Asenath the 
daughter of Pott-pherah, priest of On.'* 

Then Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt; he was 
thirty years old when he-stood before Pharaoh, and as he 
was seventeen when he was sold into Eg}^t, he had been 
just thirteen years a slave. In the seven years of plenty 
Joseph gathered up very much food, until he stopped count- 
ing, and laid it up in the cities. In that time Asenath bore 
to Joseph two sons, whom he called Manasseh^ (causing to 
forget) and Ephraim (doubly fruitful). 

Now when the seven ye^rs of plenty had elapsed, the seven 
years of famine began to come, according as Joseph had 
said; and there was famine in all lands; but in Egypt there 
was bread. For Joseph opened everywhere the store-houses, 
and sold food to the Egjrptians. And the famine waxed 
sore in all lands, so that people from all countries came into 
Egypt to buy corn. 

The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed, but My kindness 
shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be re- 
moved, saith the Lord that has mercy on thee. — (Is. 54, 10.] 

' The signet-ring was the indisputable marlj of roj-^al power. 

2 The byssus or fine linen was the peculiar dress of the Egyptian priests. 

* On, Heliopolis, the city of the sun. By this marriage with the daughter of 
the prince-priest of On, Joseph was united to the prijstly caste, the head of the 
castes into which the people were divided. 



40 GENESIS. 



26. FIRST JOURNEY OF JOSEPH'S BROTHERS. 

(1 Mos. 42.) 

Now when Jacob knew that there was corn in Egypt, he said 
to his sons: Why do you look at each other in that helpless 
way? Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: 
get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that we 
may live and not die. So Joseph's ten brothers set out upon 
their journey to buy corn in Egypt. But Benjamin, Joseph's 
brother, Jacob sent not with the others, for he said: Lest a 
misfortune might befall him. When the brothers appeared 
before Joseph, who superintended the selling of the corn, 
they bowed down in reverence before him, as the governor 
of the land. As soon as he saw them', he knew them,^ but 
made himself strange to them,^ and spoke roughly to them, 
sajring: From whence do you come? From the land of Ca- 
naan to buy food, was the reply. Now Joseph remembered 
the dreams he dreamt of them. You are spies, he exclaimed, 
you have come to see at what point the country is open to 
attack. No! no! my lord, but to buy food are thy servants 
come. We a^e all one man's sons; we are true men; thy ser- 
vants are no spies. I don't believe you, he replied, you are 
spies! Thy servants, answered they, are twelve brothers, 
the sons of one man in the land of Canaan: and behold, the 
youngest has staid at home with our father, and one is no 
more. But Joseph said : That is what I spoke to you, you 
are spies! By the life of Pharaoh! you shall not go home 
except your youngest brother come hither. Send one of you 
and let him fetch your brother, and you shall be kept in 
prison, that your words may be proved, whether there be any 
truth in you, or else, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are 
spies. And he put them all together in prison. On the 
third day he liberated them and s^d to them : This do, and 
live; for I fear God. If you are true men, let one of your 
brothers be imprisoned in the house of your custody, and 
you go carry corn for the famine of your houses. But bring 
your youngest brother to me, then will your words be veri- 
fied, and you shall not die. 

Tortured by their consciences and fearing that now the 
hour of requital of their evil deeds has arrived, they spoke 
one to another in their native Hebrew tongue: We have 

1 pjut they could not recognise liini a\1io Imd not been soon for 20 years, and 
■who, moreover, had not only become tlioroughly Egyptianizud, but had risen to 
be a great lord. 

2 Joseph, to conceal himself, got another to epeak for him, who was called on 
thie account an interpreter. 



GENESIS. 41 

deserved it all! For did we not see our brother's anguish 
when he begged us for mercy, without being moved by it; 
therefore has this distress come upon us. And Reuben an- 
swered them, saying: Did I not say to you: do not sin against 
the child, and you would not hear? therefore behold his 
blood is required. And Joseph understood them, without 
their knowing it; for he spoke to them by an interpreter. 
And he left them and wept, but then returned and ordered 
Simeon to be bound before their eyes. Then Joseph com- 
manded to fill their vessels with corn, and to restore every 
man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for 
the way. And they loaded their asses with the corn, and 
departed thence. On the way as they opened their sacks to 
give their asses provender, they espied their money, and their 
heart failed them, and they were afraid, sapngone to another: 
"What is this that God has done to us? 

And when they came home to Jacob their father, and told 
him all that befell them, he said: You have bereaved me of 
my children, Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and you will 
take Benjamin away: everything goes against me! And 
Reuben said: Thou mayest kill my two sons, if I bring him 
not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will restore 
him to thee. And he said: My son shall not go down with 
you; for his brother is dead, and he alone is left, if an acci- 
dent befall him on the way in which you go, then you will 
bring down my gray hairs with sorrow into the grave. 

Of my transgressions I am conscious, and my sin is ever present to me. 
That Thou mayest appear just when Thou speakest, clear when Thou 
judgest.— Ps. 51, 5, 6. 



27. THE SECOND JOURNEY OF JOSEPH'S BROTH- 
ERS TO EGYPT. 

(lMos.43,) 

And the famine was sore in the land. And when they had 
eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, 
their father said to them: Go again, buy us a little food. 
But Judah said: The man solemnly protested to us, saying: 
You shall not see my face except your brother be with you; 
if thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and 
buy thee food ; I will be surety for him ; of my hand thou 
mayest demand him; if I do not bring him to thee, and 
place him before thee, then let me have sinned against thee 
for ever. And their father Israel said: If it must be so 
now, do this; take of the most choice productions of the 
land, a little balsam, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, 



42 GENESIS. 

nuts, and almonds. And take double money in your hand: 
and the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks 
take it back in your hand, perhaps it was an oversight.' 
Take also your brother; and may God Almighty give you 
mercy before the man, that he may send with you your other 
brother and Benjamin, and I, as I am bereaved, so am I 
bereaved! 

Thus the men took the present, and double money in their 
hand and Benjamin; and they rose and went down to Egypt, 
and stood before Joseph. When Joseph saw Benjamin with 
them, he said to the steward of the house: Bring these men 
into the house, and make ready a meal, for they shall dine 
with me at noon. And the men were afraid, because they 
were brought into Joseph's house; and they said: On account 
of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time, 
are we brought in; that he may throw himself upon 
us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen. They 
approached, therefore, the steward of Joseph's house, and 
spoke with him, and set forth to him the occurrence with the 
corn-money. But he said: Peace be to you, fear not: your 
God, and the God of your father, has given you treasure in 
your sacks; I have received your money. And he brought 
Simeon out to them. In the meantime they made ready the 
present for Joseph's coming at noon; for they heard that 
they should eat a meal there. 

When Joseph came home, they brought him the present, 
and bowed themselves to him to the earth. And he asked 
them of their welfare, and said: Is your father well, the old 
man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive? Thy servant 
our father is in good health, he is still alive, was the reply, 
and they bowed down their heads and made obeisance. Now 
he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his 
mother's son, and said: Is this your youngest brother, of 
whom you spoke? God bless you, my son. Then he hurried 
away to another chamber; for his love was kindled toward 
his brother, and he wept there. Then he washed his face, 
and went out, and restrained himself, and said: Set on the 
meal! And they set on for him by himself, and for them by 
themselves, and for the Egyptians who were eating with him, 
by themselves: for the Egyptians cannot eat a meaP with 
the Hebrews; for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. 
And they sat before him, all arranged in the order of their 
ages, to their great amazement. And they ate and drank 
and were merry with him. 

He that covers offences seeks love. — Prov. 17, 9. 

1 He sent back the money found in the sacks ; for he knew it did not belong to 
him, and good people are always honest. 

2 Because the Hebrews ate some creatures which the Egyptians worshipped as 
gods. 




Egyptian Ring Money. 




Egyptian Divining Cup (p. 43). 




Egyptian Coffin and Mummies (p. 48V 

l^vy Tyr^ Photo-Evg.Co., BaUimorf. 



GENESIS. 43 

28. THE TRIAL OF THE BROTHERS. 

(1 Mos. 44.) 

Josepli commanded the steward of liis house, saying: Fill 
the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and 
put every man's money in his sack's mouth. And put my 
silver cup into the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and 
the money of his purchase of corn. And he did in accord- 
ance with the word that Joseph had spoken. When morn- 
ing had come, and the men were sent away and had left the 
city, Joseph said to his steward: Rise, pursue after them, 
and when thou overtakest them, say to them: Wherefore 
have you returned evil for good? Is not this the cup out of 
which my lord drinks, and whereby he divines? ^ You have 
done evil in what you did. And he overtook them, and 
spoke to them those words. And they said: Wherefcre 
does my lord say these words ? God forbid that thy servants 
should do a thing hke that. Behold, the money which we 
found in our sack's mouth, we returned to thee out of the 
land of Canaan; how then should we steal out of thy lord's 
house silver or gold ? "With whomsoever of thy servants it 
be found let him die, and we also will be bondmen to my 
lord. And he said: Is it now indeed right according to 
your words ? He with whom it is found shall be my servant, 
but you shall be blameless. Then they speedily took down 
every man his sack to the ground, and opened it. And 
he searched, and began with the eldest, and finished with 
the youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. 
And they rent their clothes, every man loaded his ass, and 
returned to the city. 

Faithful are the wounds of a friend ; but the kisses of an enemy are 
deceitful.— Prov. 27, 6. 



k 



29. JOSEPH MAKES HIMSELF KNOWN TO HIS 
BROTHERS. 



(1 Mos. 45.) 



Judah and his brothers came to Joseph's house, for he was 
stiU there; and they fell before him to the ground. Then 
Judah stepped near him, and said: my lord, let thy serv- 
ant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not 
thy anger burn against thy servant; for thou art as Pharaoh. 

1 Divination by clips was frequent in ancient times. It was practised either 
by dropping gold, silver, or jewels into the water, and then examining their 
appearance ; or simply by looking into the water as into a mirror. 



44 GENESIS. 

When first we came here, our lord asked his servants: Have 
you a father or a brother? And we said to my lord: "We 
have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a 
youth, whom his father loves, for his brother is dead, and he 
alone is left of his mother. And thou saidst: Bring him 
down to me, that I may set my eyes upon him. But we said 
to my lord: The youth cannot leave his father; for if he 
should, his father would die. Then thou saidst to thy serv- 
ants: Unless your youngest brother come down with you, 
you shall see my face no more. We told these words of my 
lord to our father, and he said: You know. that my wife bore 
me two sons; and the one went out from me, and I said: 
Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since. If 
you take this also from me, and an accident befall him, you 
shall bring down my grey hairs with sorrow into the grave. 
Now, therefore, when I come to thy servant my father, and 
the youth be not with us, since his soul is bound up in the 
youth's soul, we shall make the gray head of our father go 
down with sorrow to the grave. And now my lord, I have 
gone surety for him. Let me stay then, instead of him, as a 
bondman to my lord; and let the youth go up with his 
brothers. For how could I ever go into my father's presence, 
if the boy were no longer with us ? I could not bear to look 
upon the anguish which would seize him. 

Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all those 
who stood by him, and he cried: Let every man go out from 
me ! And when there stood no man with him, Joseph made 
himself known to his brothers. And he wept aloud, and 
cried: I am Joseph ! does my father yet live ? His brothers 
could not answer him, for they were confounded before him. 
Come near to me, he said, I am indeed Joseph your brother, 
whom you sold into Egypt. But now be not grieved nor an- 
gry with yourselves, that you sold me hither; for God sent 
me before you for the preservation of life. For these two 
years has the famine been in the land, and there are yet five 
years in which there will neither be ploughing nor reaping. 
And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant 
on earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So, 
now, it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and He 
has made me a father to Pharaoh ^ and lord of all his house, 
and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Hasten, and 
go up to my father, and say to him: Thus says thy son 
Joseph: God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to 
me, tarry not; and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen" 

1 A wise and confidential Mend and counsellor. 

2 A very fertile province to the uorth-east of Egypt, and mainly, if not wholly 
to the cast of the Nile. 



GENESIS. 45 

and thou shalt be near me, thou, and thy children, and thy 
children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and ail 
that thou hast; and there will I nourish thee during the 
years of famine. And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes 
of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaks 
to you. And you shall tell my father of all my glory in 
Egypt, and of all that you have seen: and you shall hasten 
and bring down my father hither. And he fell upon his 
brother Benjamin's neck, and wept, and Benjamin wept upon 
his neck. And he kissed all his brothers, and wept upon 
them: and after that his brothers spoke to him. 

Meanwhile the report was heard in Pharaoh's house, that 
Joseph's brothers were come ; and it pleased Pharaoh and his 
servants. And Pharaoh said to Joseph : Say to thy brothers : 
This do; load your "animals and go, proceed to the land of 
Canaan and take your father, and your households, and come 
to me; and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, 
and you shall eat the fat of the land. And Joseph gave 
them wagons, according to the command of Pharaoh, and 
gave them provision for the way. To each of them he gave 
a complete suit of festal garments, and to Benjamin he gave 
three hundred shekels of silver, and five suits of garments. 
To his father he also sent rich presents; then he sent the 
brothers off with the injunction: Do not be angry with your- 
selves by the way ! When they came back to their father 
and told him: Joseph is still alive, and indeed he is governor 
over all the land of Egypt, his heart did not respond to this 
joyful news; for he put no faith in what they said. It was 
not till they told him all that Joseph had said, and he saw 
the wagons that he had sent, that the spirit of Jacob their 
father re^^ved; and he exclaimed: It is enough ! Joseph my 
son is yet alive ! I will go and see him before I die. 

Love covers all oflfences. — Prov. 10, 12 



30. JACOB'S EMIGRATION WITH HIS FAMILY 
TO EGYPT. 

(1 Mos. 46. 47. 48.) 

Jacob took his journey with all that he had, and came to 
Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father 
Isaac. In the visions of the night God spoke to Jacob and 
said: I am God, the God of thy father; fear not to go down 
into Eg3rpt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: I 
will go down with thee into Egypt, and I will also surely 
bring thee up again, and Joseph shall put his hands upon 



46 GENESIS. 

thy eyes.^ And Jacob rose up from Beer-slieba and came 
with his whole family, seventy persons altogether, into the 
land of Goshen. Hither Joseph went up to meet his father, 
and when he appeared before him, he fell on his neck, and 
wept on his neck a long time. And Israel said to Joseph: 
Now let me die, since I have seen thy face that thou art yet 
alive. 

Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said: My father 
and my brothers and their flocks and their herds and all that 
they have, are come out of the land of Canaan ; and behold, 
they are in the land of Goshen. And he took some of his 
brothers and presented them to Pharaoh. And Pharaoh 
said to them : "What is your occupation ? Thy servants are 
shepherds, was the reply. And Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, 
saying-: The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the 
land make thy father and brothers to dwell; and if thou 
knowest any men of activity among them, then make them 
rulers over my cattle. And Joseph brought Jacob his father 
to the King, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh 
said to Jacob : How old art thou ? Jacob answered : The 
years of my pilgrimage are a hundred and thirty years: few 
and evil have the years of my life been, and have not 
attained to the years of the life of my fathers in the days of 
their pilgrimage. Now Jacob blessed Pharaoh a second 
time and went out from before him. 

Joseph supported his father, and his brothers, and all his 
father's household with bread according to their families. 
Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; then hav- 
ing attained the age of a hundred and forty-seven years, 
he felt that his end was approaching. He sent for his son 
Joseph, and said to him: If now I have found grace in thy 
sight, promise me by a solemn oath to deal kindly and tru- 
ly with me ; do not bury me, I pray thee, in Eg3rpt. I will 
lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, 
and bury me in their burying-place. And he said: I wHl do 
as thou hast said, and swore it to him. 

Some time after this Joseph was told. Behold, thy father is 
sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and 
Ephraim. When Jacob saw them he said: Who are these ? 
Joseph answered: They are my sons, whom God has given 
me in this place. And he said : Bring them, I pray thee, to me, 
and I will bless them. But the eyes of Israel were dim from 
old age, so that he could not see, and he brought them near to 
him; and Jacob kissed them and embraced them. Then he 

1 The ancients desired, tliat their dearest relatives should close their eyes in 
death. 



GENESIS. 47 

said: I liad not thought to see thy face : and lo, God has shown 
me also thy seed. Now Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his 
right hand towards Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his 
left hand towards Israel's right hand, and brought them near 
to him. And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it 
upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand 
upon Manasseh's head, laying on his hands deliberately, al- 
though Manasseh was the first born. And he blessed Joseph 
in blessing his seed, and said: God, before whom my fathers, 
Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who was my shepherd 
from my birth to this day; the angel who redeemed me from 
all evil, will bless the youths; and let my name, and the names 
of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, be put upon them, and 
they be counted among my immediate sons, and let them in- 
crease into a vast multitude in the midst of the land. And 
when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the 
head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his 
father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head to Manas- 
seh's head. And Joseph said to his father: Not so, my father; 
for this is the first-born ; put thy right hand upon his head. 
And his father refused, and said: I know it, my son, I know 
it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; 
but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and 
his seed shall become a numerous people. And he blessed 
them on that day, sa5dng: By thee shall Israel bless, saying: 
God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he put 
Ephraim before Manasseh. 

The father of a righteous man shall greatly rejoice ; yea, he who begets 
a wise child shall have ]oy in him. — Ps. 23, 24. 

31. JACOB'S FUNERAL AND JOSEPH'S DEATH. 

[1 Mos. 50.] 

And Jacob called to his sons and blessed them; every one 
according to his respective blessing. And he charged them, 
and said to them: I am to be gathered to my people; bury 
me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron 
the Hittite. In the cave of Machpelah, which is before 
Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought for a 
possession of a burying-place. 

When Jacob had finished charging his sons, he gathered 
his feet into the bed, and expired and was gathered to his 
people. And Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept 
upon him and kissed him. Then he commanded his ser- 
vants the physicians to embalm^ his father. And after this 

1 To embalm dead bodies is to fill them with odoriferous and preservative spices 
and drags ; and after this the corpse is rolled up tightly in linen clothes, and gen- 
erally put into a coffin of strong wood or stone, finely ornamented. 



48 GENESIS. 

having been done at tlie end of forty days, Joseph, with all 
his brothers, the elders of Pharaoh and of the land of Egypt, 
and chariots and horsemen as an escort for the journey through 
the desert, set out for Hebron, and journeyed on till they 
came to the field of Machpelah. Here they buried Jacob and 
then returned into Egypt. 

Now when Joseph's brothers saw that their father was 
dead, they said: Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will 
certainly requite us all the evil which we did to him. And 
they sent messengers to Joseph with these words: Thy father 
commanded before he died, saying: So shall you say to Jo- 
seph : Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brothers, 
and their sin; for they did to thee evil: and now, we pray 
thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy 
father. And Joseph wept when these words were spoken to 
him, and he said to his brothers: Fear not; for am I in God's 
stead ? But as for you, you meant evil against me ; but God 
meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to pre- 
serve much people. Now, therefore, fear not: I will nour- 
ish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and 
spoke kindly to them. 

And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father's house: 
and he lived a hundred and ten years. Before his death 
Joseph said to his brothers: I die; and God will surely visit 
you, and bring you out of this land, to the land which He 
swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. Then he took an 
oath of the children of Israel, saying: God will surely visit 
you, and you shall carry up my bones from hence. So Jo- 
seph died, being a hundred and ten years old: and they em- 
balmed him, and he was put in a cofiBn in Egypt. 

The wicked man travails with paiji all his days. A dreadful sound is 

in his ears : in prosperity the destroyer shall come upon him. — Job 15, 20, 21. 

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. — Ps. 116, 15. 



EXODUS, 

WHICH MEANS: 

THE GOING OUT: 

Because this Booh gives an account of the Children of Israel 
Going out of Egypt, 



32. ISRAEL OPPRESSED IN EGYPT. BIRTH OF 
MOSES, A. M. 2441, C. B. 1579. 

(2 Mos. 1.) 

It shall come to pass that at evening time, it shall be light. — Zech. 14, 7. 

After tlie deatli of Joseph and his brothers, their descend- 
ants increased in Egypt abundantly, and the land was filled 
with them. Now there arose a new king, who had never known 
Joseph, the benefactor of Egypt. He said to his people : Be- 
hold, the people of the children of Israel are more numerous 
and stronger than we. Come then, let us deal wisely with them, 
lest they multiply, and when there happens any war, they 
join with our enemies, fight against us, and go up out of the 
land. Therefore they set severe task-masters over them, who 
afflicted them with burdens, and the children of Israel were 
compelled to build for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and 
Raamses.' But the more they were afflicted, the more they 
multiplied and spread, until they became a horror to the 
Eg3rptians. Hence the Egyptians made the children of Israel 
to serve with rigor, and made their lives bitter with hard 
bondage, in mortar, and in brick, and in all manner of ser- 
vice in the field. Moreover the king commanded the Hebrew 
mid-wives to kill all the new-born sons of the Hebrews, and 
to let only the daughters live. But the mid-wives feared 
God, and saved the men children alive. 

Now Pharaoh charged all his people, saying: Every son 

1 These cities were in the land of Goshen. According to Josephu6, the Israelites 
were employed on the famous pyramids, or huge monuments, which remain to 
this day iu Egypt among the greatest wonders of the world. 
o 



50 EXODUS. 

that is "bom to a Hebrew woman you shall cast into the river, 
and every daughter you shall save alive. But there went a 
man of the house of Levi, whose name was Amram, and took 
to wife Jochehed, a daughter of Levi.^ And the woman bore 
a son, a beautiful child, and she hid him carefully for three 
months. But when she could no longer hide him, she took 
an ark of bulrushes, ^ and in order to make it water-tight, she 
daubed it with slime and with pitch, put the child therein, 
and laid it among the flags at the banks of the Nile. Miriam^ 
the sister of the child, remained at some distance to see what 
might happen to him. Now the daughter of Pharaoh ^ came 
down to wash herself at the river, and her maidens walked 
along by the river's side. When she saw the ark among 
the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it. And when she had 
opened it, she saw the child, and behold, it was a weeping 
boy, and she had compassion on him. This is one of the 
Hebrews' children, she exclaimed. 

His sister drawing near, as if to see what was found, said 
to Pharaoh's daughter: Shall I go, and call to thee a nurse 
of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for 
thee? Go I was the reply. And the maid went and called 
the child's mother. And Pharaoh's daughter said to her: 
Take this child, and nurse it . for me and I will give thee thy 
wages. Jochebed took the child home again and nursed it. 
But when the child grew, she brought him to Pharaoh's 
daughter, who adopted him as her son, and called his name 
Moses,* which means drawn out ; for she said: Because 1 
drew him out of the water. 

Wisdom is nothings, and understanding is nothing, and devices are noth- 
ing, against the Lord. — Prov. 21, 30. 

33. MOSES' FLIGHT FROM EGYPT, AND LIFE IN 
MIDIAN. 

(2 Mos. 2, 11—22). 

When Moses came to be forty ^ years old, he went out to 
his kindred, and looked on their burdens : and he spied an 
Eg3rptian smiting a Hebrew, one of his brethren. He looked 

* Levi means liere the tribe of Levi, and not the patriarch. 

'^Ark means a boat, and the bulrushes are a sort of strong, tall reed which 
grows on the banks of the Nile. 
3 Josephns calls her Thermulhis. 

* niy^ ^'■oi''i H'^D to draw out. Josephus says : The Egj'ptians call water 
Mo, and those who are rescued from the water Uses. The Hebrew nan»e 
Moshe (Part, active) instead of Mosiiui has become nn unintentional prophecy, 
for the person drawn out has become, in fact, the drawer out.— KmvIz. 

6 TancUuma, Schemoth, p. 47, and Baba Mezia, p. 100- 



EXODUS. 51 

this way and that way, and. when he saw no one, he slew the 
Egyptian, and hid his body in the sand. When he went out 
the second day, beliold, two men of the Hebrews were quar- 
relhng together, and he said to the man he saw to be in the 
wrong : "Wherefore smitest thou thy f ellow-m.an ? And he 
said: Who made thee a ruler and judge over us? Intendest 
thou to kill me as thou killedst the Egyptian? And Tyloses 
feared, and said: Surely this thing is known. In fact even 
Pharaoh was told of it, who tried to slay Moses. But he at 
once escaped into Midian.^ 

There Moses sat down to rest by a well, and seven maidens 
came to draw water. They were sisters, the daughters of 
the priest of Midian. They began filling the troughs to water 
their father's flock, but other shepherds soon arrived and 
drove them away. Moses then arose and helped the young 
women, and watered their flocks for them. When they got 
home to Jetheo ^ their father, he said : How is it, that you 
return so soon to-day? And they answered: An Egyptian 
saved us from the shepherds, and also drew water enough for 
us, and watered the flocks. Then their father asked: Where 
is he? Why is it, that you have left the man? Call him, 
that he may eat bread. So Moses went to the priest's house, 
who gave him Zipporah his daughter to wife. She bore him 
a son, and he called his name Geeshom; for he said: I have 
been a stranger in a strange land. Another son of Moses, 
later born, was called Eliezer, that is. My God is an help. 

Deliver him that suffers wrong from the hand of the oppressor. — Lev. 
4,9. 



34. MOSES CALLED AND CO^IMISSIONED. 

(2Mos. 3-^, 19.) 

Now when Moses was keeping the flocks of Jethro his 
father-in-law, he drove them once behind the wilderness and 
came to the mountain of God, towards Horeb.^ And the 
Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of 
the midst of a bush,'' and he looked, and behold, although the 

1 On the borders of Palestine and Arabia. The portion of the land of Midian 
where Moses took his abode, was probably the Peninsula of Sinai. 

2 The name of Moses's father-in-law was Jethro (elsewhere called Hobab and 
Reuel. According to Josephus Reuel was his proper name, and Jether or Jethro, 
which means ''excellency," was his official designation.) 

3 The Red Sea terminates in two narrow gulfs ; the western running up to the 
modern Isthmus of Suez, the eastern extending not quite so far to the north. In 
the mountainous district between these two forks of the sea stands a remarkable 
eminence with two peaks, the northeastern is called Sinai. 

* One of the dwarf acacias (seneh) the characteiistic vegetation of the desert. ^ 



52 EXODUS. 

bush was burning, it was not consumed. And Moses said, I 
will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is 
not burnt. But when the Lord saw that he turned aside to 
see: He called to him out of the midst of the bush, and said: 
Moses, Moses! and he said: Here am I. Then the Lord said: 
Draw not nigh hither: put oif thy shoes from off thy feet, 
for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.^ More- 
over he said: I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abra- 
ham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Moses hid 
his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. But the Lord 
said: I have surely seen the affliction of My people in Egypt, 
and have heard their cry by reason of their oppressors; I 
know their sorrows. Now I am come to deliver them out of 
the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up into a good 
and a large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey. 
Come now therefore, I will send thee to Pharaoh, that thou 
mayest bring forth My people, the children of Israel, out of 
Egypt. But Moses said to God: Who am I, that I should go 
to Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of 
Israel out of Egypt? And God said: Certainly I will be with 
thee; and this shall be the sign to thee, that I have sent 
thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, 
you shall serve God upon this mountain. 

Then Moses replied : Behold, when I come to the children of Israel, and 
shall say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you; and they 
shall say to me, What is his name 1 what shall I say to them ? And God 
said to Moses : I AM THAT I AM : Thus shalt thou say to the children 
of Israel, I AM, that is, the eternal God, the God of your fathers, the God 
of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you : 
this is My name for ever, and this is My memorial to all generations. 
Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say to them. The Lord 
God of your fathers appeared to me, saying : I have surely visited you, 
and seen that which is done to you in Egypt ; and I will bring you up out 
of the affliction of Egypt into a land flowing with milk and honey. I am 
sure, however, that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by 
means of a strong hand. 

Then I will stretch out My hand, and smite Egypt with all My wonders 
which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. 

And Moses answered and said : But, behold, they will not believe me, 
nor hearken to my voice ; for they will say : The Lord has not appeared 
to thee. And the Lord said to him : What is that in thy hand 1 A rod, 
Moses answered. He said : Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the 
ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. Then 
the Lord said to Moses : Put forth thy hand, and take it by the tail. And 
he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand. 
The Lord said furthermore to him : Put now thy hand into thy bosom. 
And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, 
his hand was leprous as snow. And He said. Put thy hand into thy 

1 Pnttinf;: off of Phoes, picrnified reverence. In the Orient no respectable man 
Avoiild enter the lu)U!<fi of another without having first taken oll'hia sandals, which 
are generally left at the door. 



' EXODUS. 53 

bosom again. And when he had done so, behold, it was turned again as 
his other flesh. Then the Lord said, if they will not believe thee, neither 
hearken to the voice of the first sign, they will believe the voice of the 
latter sign. And if they will not believe also these two signs, neither 
hearken to thy voice, thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour 
it upon the dry land : and the water shall become blood upon the dry 
land. But Moses said to the Lord : O my Lord, I am not eloquent, I 
neither possess the gift ^f speech by birth nor have I received it since. 
Thou hast spoken to Thy servant ; but I am slow of speech, and of a slow 
tongue. And the Lord said to him : Who has made man's mouth ? or 
who make^ the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind 1 have not I, the 
Lord 1 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee 
what thou shalt say. Moreover, Aaron, thy brother who can speak well, 
will be at thy side : Behold he comes forth to meet thee : and when he sees 
thee, he will be glad in his heart. 

Now Moses went, and returned to Jethro his father-in-law, 
and said to him: Let me go, I pray thee, and return to my 
brethren, who are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet 
alive. And Jethro said to Moses: Go in peace! 

By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honor, and life.— s- 
Prov. 22, 4. 

The Lord established Moses for the sake of his faithfulness and meek- 
ness and chose him out of all men. — ^Lev. 45, 4. 



35. RETUEN OF MOSES TO EGYPT. 

(2 Mos. 4, 20—6, 12.) 

Moses took his wife, and his sons, and returned to the 
land of Egjrpt, At Mount Horeb he met his brother Aaron, 
and when he had kissed him he told him all the words of 
the Lord and the glorious mission with which he had been 
entrusted. Both of them returned now to Egypt, and as 
soon as they arrived there, they assembled all the elders of 
the children of Israel. And Aaron spoke all the words 
which the Lord had spoken to Moses, and did the signs in 
the sight of the people. The people believed, and when they 
heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel, and 
that He had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed 
their heads and worshipped. 

Afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh: 
Thus says the Eternal, the God of Israel; Let my people go, 
that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness. Pharaoh 
replied: Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to 
let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel 
go. He said further: Wherefore do you, Moses and Aaron, 
disturb the people from their works? go you to your bur- 
dens. And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmas- 
ters of the people, and their scribes,^ saying: You shall no 

1 These were Hebrews, appointed by the Egyptian superintendents and re- 
Bpousihle to them for the work. 



54 ^ EXODUS. 

more give tlie people straw ^ to make brick, as heretofore: 
let them go and gather straw for themselves. And the tale 
of the bricks which they did make heretofore you shall lay 
upon them; you shall not diminish aught thereof. They are 
idle; therefore they cry, saying: Let us go and sacrifice to 
our God. Thus the children of Israel were indeed still more 
oppressed. 

Then the Lord said to Moses : I have heard the grotoincj of the chil- 
dren of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage ; and I have remem- 
bered my covenant. Wherefore say to the children of Israel : I am the 
Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, 
and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a 
stretched-out arm, and with great judgments. And I will take you to Me 
for a people, and I will be to you a God. And I will bring you in to the 
land, concerning which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and 
to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage; I, the Lord. And 
Moses spoke so to the children of Israel : but they hearkened not to Moses, 
through the discouragement caused by hard bondage. 

In my distress I cried to the Lord and He heard me. — ^Ps. 120, 1. 



36. THE TEN PLAGUES. 

(2 Mos. 7, 10.) 

Now Moses and Aaron were sent by the Lord to speak with Pharaoh 
again. Moses was eighty years old and Aaron eighty-three, when they 
stood before Pharaoh. Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and be- 
fore his servants, and it became a serpent. And Pharaoh called for his 
servants, the magicians, or wise men of Egypt. And they came with 
their rods in their hands, and when they had thrown them down, they 
were also changed into serpents. But Aaron's rod swallowed up all the 
other rods. Still Pharaoh remained obstinate, and would not let the 
people go. The following day Pharaoh Avent to the river Nile. Here 
Moses and Aaron again confronted him, as commanded by the Lord. 

1. Blood. — And Aaron struck with the rod in his hand the waters, 
and it was changed into blood, and the fish (which are abundant in the 
Nile) died, and no man could drink of the river. But when the magi- 
cians of Egypt did so Avith their enchantments, Pharaoh's heart was 
hardened again. 

2. Frogs. — Now the Lord commanded Moses to threaten him with a 
second plague, which should be frogs. And what he said to Pharaoh 
came to pass. When Aaron held out his rod the frogs came np out of 
the waters, so many of them that they covered the land. They went into 
the houses of the Egyptians, into their ovens, and into their kncading- 
troughs ; they went into Pharaoh's house and on his bed. And still Pha- 
raoh hardened his heart. 

3. Lice. 2 — Then the Lord commanded Aaron to strike the dust on the 
ground with his rod. And when he had done so, the dust was changed 
into lice. The magicians tried to do the same, but unable to do it, they 
were constrained to acknowledge : This is the finger of God. 

1 Straw was used, to make the clay of the bricks stick faster t02:ether. 

2 Probably a small tick, closcribed in Sir S. Baker's travels, which, thouijh itself 
not larjxor than a ^rain of hsaiul, has a niarvollous power of suction, aud will fill 
Itself with blood till it reaches the size of a hazcl-uut. 



EXODUS. 55 

4. Flies. ^ — Then a grierous swarm o{ flies (gad-flies)^ came into the 
house of rhai-aohand into all the land of Egypt : the land was corrupted 
by reason of them. Fharaoh now was inclined to yield a little ; still on 
the removal of the plague he again hardened his heart. 

5. Murrain. — The Lord then brought a murrain on the cattle. But 
none of those belonging to the children of Israel died. 

6. Boils. — Still more appalling was the sixth plague, boils upon man 
and beast. They were also upon the magicians. 

7. Hail. — This was followed by a seventh plague of hail, Avhich was 
accompanied by fire, and thunder so terrific, as to destroy the growing 
ci'ops, to break trees, and smite down men who were exposed to it. Only 
in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no 
hail. Pharaoh again in his alarm relented, but hardened once more his 
heart when the judgment was withdrawn. 

8. Locusts. — Scarcely less fearful than any of the preceding plagues 
was the eighth. An east wind brought locusts'^ in vast clouds OA-er the 
land, more numerous, more terrible, than they had ever been seen before. 
They descended on the fields, on the trees, and rapidly changed the whole 
country into an arid desert. Now Pharaoh in haste summoned Moses 
and Aaron, and said : I have sinned against the Lord your God, and 
against you. Now, therefore, forgive my sin only this once, and entreat 
the Lord, that He may take away from me this death only. Moses 
prayed to God, and the Lord sent a mighty strong west wind, which took 
away the locusts, and cast them into the Ked Sea. And when Pharaoh 
saw that they were taken away, he would not let the people go. 

9. Darkness.^ — Then followed the ninth plague; a thick darkness for 
three days hung over Egypt. For three days no man could rise from his 
place ; but the Hebrews had light in their dwellings. Great was the 
obstinate King's alarm. He sent for Moses, bidding him depai-t instantly 
with all his people, only leaving their flocks and herds behind as a pledge. 
But Moses declared : Our cattle shall also go with us, not one hoof shall 
remain behind ; for thereof must we take to serve the Lord our God. 
Pharaoh hardened his heait as before, and exclaimed to Moses : Go away 
from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more ; for on that day thou 
seest my face, thou shalt die. And Moses replied : Thou hast spoken 
right ; I will see thy face no more. 

10. Death of the First-Born. — And the Lord said to Moses: 
Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt ; 
aftenvards he will let you go hence. About midnight will I go out 
into the midst of Egypt, and all the first-born in the land of Egypt 
shall die, from the first-born of Pharaoh, who sits upon his throne, 
to the first-born of the maid-servant who is behind the mill,* and 
all the first-born of beasts. And there shall be a great cry^ through- 
out all the land of Egypt, such as there Avas none like it nor shall be like 
it any more. But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog 
move" his tongue, against man or beast ; that ye may know how that the 

1 Gad-flies, more venomous and pertinacious than mosquitoes, sometimes 
appear in Egypt in such masses as to cover the whole country. 

2Thevare like a large grasshopper, with wings of green color. They fly in 
such large bodies that they shut out the light of the sun like a cloud. 

3 A total darkness is caused in Egypt— -as travelers describe— by the south-west 
wind, when, at the vernal equinox, it blows for many days together, from the 
desert laden with fine sand, t^o filled is the atmosphere by it, that no man 
attempts to light a lamp, for the air has lost all its transparency. 

* The mill consisted of two circular stones, one fixed in the ground, the other 
turned hy a handle. The extremely laborious work was generally performed by 
women of the lowest rank. 

5 In Egypt, when any one died, the people ran into the streets and howled, and 
Bhowed their grief in the strongest manner. 



56 EXODUS. 

Lord distinguishes between the Egyptians and Israel. Then they will 
come and say : Go out, thou, and all the people that follow thee. 

The Lord saved them for His name's sake, that He might make His 
mighty power to be known. — Fs. 106, 8. 



37. THE PASSOVER IS INSTITUTED. DEPART- 
URE OP THE ISRAELITES. C. E. 1491. 

(2 Mos. 12.) 

The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying : 
This month shall be to you the beginning of months : it shall be the first 
month of the year to you. Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying : 
In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them a lamb for each 
family. You shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month, 
and kill it between the evenings,^ and strike of its blood on the two side- 
posts, and on the upper door-post of the houses, wherein they shall eat 
it. They shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and shall eat 
unleavened bread, with bitter herbs. Thus shall you eat it : with your 
loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and vour staff in your hand ; and 
you shall eat it in haste; it is the LORD'S PASSOVER. For I will 
pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the first- 
born in the land of Egypt, and the blood shall be to you for a sign upon 
the houses where you are : and when I see the blood, 1 will pass over you, 
and the plague shall not be upon you. And this day shall be to you for 
a memorial ; and you shall keep it a feast to the Lord. In the first month, 
on the fourteenth day of the month, at even, you shall eat unleavened bread. 
Seven days shall you eat unleavened bread ; even the first day you shall put 
away leaven out of your houses : for whosoever eats leavened bread, from 
the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. 
And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation,^ and in the seventh 
day there shall be an holy convocation to you : no manner of work shall 
be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be 
done of you.* 

And it came to pass, that at midnight the Lord smote all 
the first-born in the land of Eg3rpt, from the first-born of 
Pharaoh, who would sit on his throne, to the son of the pris- 
oner in the prisons. 

And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, all his servants, and 
all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for 
there was not a house where there was not one dead. Then 
Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in that very night, and 
said to them : Arise, go out from among my people, both you 
and the children of Israel; and go serve the Lord as you 
have said, and take your flocks and your herds; and bless 
me also. The Egyptians also urged the Israelites to accel- 

* The tune from afternoon, or early eventide, until sunset. Others understand 
it to mean the interval between piinset and total darkness. 

2 An assembly called by proclamation, for a reliufious solemnity. The proclama- 
tion was made, on some occasions, by the blowing of the silver trumpets. 

8 In this the observance of the festival difl'ered from that of the Sabbath, when 
the preparation of food was prohibited. 



EXODUS. 57 

erate their departure, for they said to themselves, we are all 
exposed to death. This urgency of the Egyptians compelled 
the Israelites to take the dough, before it was leavened, and 
also their kneading- troughs ^ bound up in their clothes upon 
their shoulders. 

The afflicted people Thou wilt save : hut Thine eyes are upon the haughty, 
that Thou may est bring them down. — 2 Sam. 22, 28. 



38. DESTRUCTION OF PHARAOH AND HIS 
ARMY IN THE RED SEA. 

(2 Mos. 13, 14.) 

The children of Israel had dwelt in Egypt for four hundred 
and thirty years. Guided by Moses and Aaron they marched 
from Rameses^ to Succoth,^ a host of six hundred thousand 
armed men, and their wives and children, and a mixed multi- 
tude of strangers who followed them: and they carried with 
them the embalmed remains of their great ancestor, Joseph. 
And the Lord led them through the way of the wilderness of 
the Red Sea, and they were guided by a cloud in the air, which 
was of the shape of a pillar, and which at night was light on 
their side, but dark on the other. Following this guidance, 
their next halt was Mham, on the edge of the wilderness. 
From here they did not go straight forward, but turned and 
encamped on the western shore of the Red Sea, before Pi- 
hachirothj'^ when suddenly a cry of alarm ran through the 
vast multitude. For Pharaoh and his servants, recovering 
from their panic, and receiving intelligence that the Israelites 
in their flight had no thoughts of return, repented of letting 
them go, and said: Why have we done this, that we have 
let Israel go from serving us ? Instantly were assembled six 
hundred chosen war chariots,^ and the hosts of Egypt, and 
he pursued after the children of Israel, and overtook them 
encamping by the sea. On both sides were mountains, before 
them the sea, and Pharaoh's army behind them. The fear 
of the Israelites was boundless. They turned to Moses, up- 

* The troughs were email wooden howls, such as are now used hy the Arahians. 
The Hebrews used their outer garment, or mantle, in the same way as the Bedouins 
at present, who make a hag of the voluminous folds of their haiks or burnous. 

2 Barneses, the province, was the border land of Egypt towards Arabia. 

3 The site of Siiccoth cannot be found ; it was probably some point near the 
western edge of the bitter lakes, that lay between the BirketTemsah and the Gulf 
of Suez. 

4 On the west side of the Gulf of Suez. 

^ Each chariot was drawn by two horses, with two men, one bearing the shield 
and driving, the other fully armed. 



68 EXODUS. 

braiding him: Because tliere were no graves in Egypt, they 
exclaimed, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness ? 
Wherefore *hast thou done this to us, to lead us forth out of. 
Egypt ? Is not this the word that we spoke to thee in Egypt, 
saying: Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians ? For 
it is better for us to serve the Eg5rptians, than that we should 
die in the wilderness. But Moses' sure trust in the Divine 
presence never wavered, and he said to them: Fear not! 
stand still ! and see the salvation of the Lord which he will 
show you to-day; for the Egyptians, whom you have seen to- 
day, you shall see them again no more for ever. 

Now the cloud began to move, and the children of Israel 
were commanded to go forward to the very borders of the 
Ked Sea. The cloud came between the camp of the Egyp- 
tians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud of darkness 
to the Egyptians, but it gave light by night to the Israelites; 
so that the one came not near to the other all night. 

Now Moses, commanded by the Lord, raised his staff and 
stretched out his hand over the sea, and throughout the night 
there blew a strong east wind, which caused the receding 
tide to go back farther than usual, and made a complete sep- 
aration between the waters of the gulf and the waters of the 
Suez lagune. And over that dried ford, the waters forming 
a barrier on their right hand and on their left, Moses led 
the Israelites. Before the dawn of the day the Egyptian host 
attempted to pursue them across the gulf, and when they were 
in the midst of it, Moses, at the bidding of the Lord, again 
stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the full spring-tide 
returned in its strength, overwhelming Pharaoh and his 
Egyptian host. Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of 
the hand of the Egyptians: and Israel saw the Egyptians dead 
upon the sea-shore. Israel saw that great work which the 
Lord did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the 
Lord, and believed the Lord, and His servant Moses. 

Then sang Moses and the sons of Israel this song unto the 
Lord, and spake, saying: 

I will sing unto the Lord, for He hath triumphed g:loriously : 
The horse and his rid^r hath He thrown into the sea. 
My strength and song is Jah, and He became my salvation : 
He is my God, and I will glorify Him; 
My father's God, and I will exalt Him. 
The Lord is a man of war, the Lord is His name. 
Pharaoh's chariots and his army hath He cast into the sea : 

And the choice of his knights arc drowned in the Red Sea. 

The depths have covered them : 

They sank into the pools as a stone. 
Thy right hand, Lord, is glorious in power: 
Thy right hand, O Lord, crushcth the enemy. 

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EXODUS. 59 

And in Thy great triumph Thou overthrowest Thy foes : 
Thou sendest forth Thy wrath ; it consumes them as stubhle. 
And with the blast of Thy nostrils, the waters were heaved up : 
The floods stood upright as a heap : 
The depths Avere condensed in the heart of the sea. 

The enemy said : I will pursue, will overtake, 

I will divide the spoil ; my lust shall be full of them ; 

I will draw my sword ; my hand shall seize them. 

Thou blewest with Thy blast, the sea covered them : 

They sank as lead in the mighty waters. 
Who is like Thee among the gods, Lord ? 
"Who is like Thee, glorious in holiness, 
Awful in praises, doing wonders ? 
The Lord shall reign for ever and ever. 

And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took the 
timbrel in her hand ; and all the women came forth after 
her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered 
them: 

Sing ye to the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously ; 
The horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea. 

Some trust in chariots, and some in horses ; but we will remember the 
name of the Lord our God.— Ps. 20, 7. 



39. MANNA. CONFLICT WITH AMALEK. 

(2 Mos. 16. 17.) 

So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea, and they went 
out into the wilderness of JShur.^ Thence they came to Elim.^ 
From there they took their journey again and came to the 
wilderness of Sin^^ which is between Elim and Sinai, on the 
fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of 
the land of Egypt. Here, in this arid sandy waste, the 
whole congregation murmured against Moses and Aaron on 
account of the want of food. What they brought with them 
from Egypt had been consumed in the thirty days that had 
elapsed since they came out. In their vexation they ex- 
claimed: Would to God we had died by the last plague 
which God sent upon Egypt, when we sat by the flesh-pots, 
and when we ate bread to satisfaction ; . for you have brought 
us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with 
hunger. Then said the Lord to Moses: Behold, I shall rain 
bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and 
gather every day what is sufficient for the day, that I may 

1 The name Shur belongs to the whole district between the north-eastern por- 
tion of Egypt and Palestine. 

2 All travellers place Elim in the valley of Girondel or Gharondel. 

3 The desert tract, called Debbet er Eamleh extending between the limestone 
district of ^E"^ Tih and the granite of Sinai. 



60 EXODUS. 

try them, whether they will walk in My law or not. And it 
will come to pass on the sixth day of the week, that they 
will prepare what they have brought, and it will be double 
what they gather daily. And Moses and Aaron said further 
to the people: At even you shall know that the Lord has 
brought you out from the land of Egypt; and in the morn- 
ing you shall see the glory of the Lord. And it came to 
pass, that at even great numbers of quails ^ came flying up to 
the camp and covering it, and in the morning, after the dew 
was dried up, there was left, spread all over the ground, a 
small, white, round thing, which looked like hoar-frost. When 
the children of Israel saw it, they exclaimed : What is that ? 
(Man-hu.) Moses answered: This is the bread which the 
Lord has given you to eat. 

Gather of it an omer (about three quarts) for every man. But let no 
man leave of it till the morning. Notwithstanding-, they hearkened not 
to Moses ; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it was spoiled 
and had Avorms in it. 

On the sixth day they gathered twice as much, two omers for one man ; 
and all the rulers of the congregation came and told Moses. And he said 
to them : This is that which the Lord has said: To-morrow is a rest, a 
Sabbath holy to the Lord : bake that which you will bake to-day, and 
seethe that you will seethe ; and that which remains over, lay up for you 
to be kept until the morning. And they laid it up till the morning, as 
Moses bade; and it was not spoiled, neither was there any worm therein. 
And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna; and it was white 
like coriander-seed, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. 
And Moses told Aaron to take a pot and put into it an omer of manna, 
and that pot, the Lord said, must be kept, so that the Israelites who 
should live long afterward might sec what kind of food the Lord had 
given to the children of Israel when He led them through the wilderness 
to the land of Canaan. 

And the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin and 
pitched in Rephidim.^ Here came Arnalek ^ and fought with Israel. And 
Moses said to Joshua : Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek. 
I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand. So 
Joshua did, and fouyht with Amalek ; and Moses went up on the top of 
the hill, and Aaron andHur* went with him. Then Moses held up his 
hand, and as long as he held it up, Israel prevailed, but whenever he let it 
down Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands were tired, and they took a 
stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon ; and Aaron and Hur 
supported his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other 
side ; and his hands were steady till the going down of the sun. Thus 
Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. 
And the Loi-d said to Moses : Write this for a memorial in a book, and 
rehearse it in the ears of Joshua ; for I will utterly put out the remem- 
brance of Amalek from under heaven.* 

1 In the sprino; of the year quails, migratory birds, pass iu large flocks over the 
Arabian peninsula. 

2 The plain before Horeb. 

'A nation descended from the Idumceans, and claiming Esau as their ancestor. 
♦According to tradition the husband of Miriam. 

» This command is interesting, as explaining how these records were ft'om the 
first preaerved. 




Shekel and Half-Shekel (p. 22.) 

J^evy Type Photo-Efig.Co., Baltmiorf. 



EXODUS. 61 

He fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy 
fathers know ; that He might make thee know that man does not hve by 
bread only, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord 
does man live. — 5 Mos. 8, 3. 



40. JETHRO IN THE CAMP OF ISRAEL. 

(2 Mos. 18.) 

Wben Jethro the priest of Midian heard of all that God had done for Mo- 
ses, and for Israel, His people, and that the Lord had brought Israel out of 
Egypt; he took Zipporah, Moses's wife, and her two sons, Gershom and 
Eliezer, and came with them into the wilderness Avhere Moses encamped 
at the mount of God. And Moses >vent out to meet him, bowed himself 
and kissed him ; and then they came into the tent. 

When Jethro heard the recital of all that had been done 
since they parted more than a year before, he rejoiced for all 
the goodness which the Lord had done to Israel, and said: 
Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods. And he 
offered sacrifice, and held a sacred feast with the elders of 
Israel. 

On the moiTow, Moses sat to judge the people ; and the people stood 
by Moses from the morning to the evening, to ask for a decision from God, 
as to questions in dispute. When Jethro saw this, he said : The thing 
that thou doest is not good. Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and 
this people that is with thee ; for this thing is too heavy for thee ; thou 
art not able to perform it thyself alone. Hearken now to my voice, I will 
give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee. Thou shalt teach them 
the ordinances and laws, and shalt show them the way wherein they must 
walk, and the work that they must do. Moreover, thou shalt provide out 
of all the people, able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covet- 
ousness ; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, and rulers 
of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. Let them judge the peo- 
ple at all seasons, and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring 
to thee, but every small matter they shall judge : so shall it be easier for 
thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee. Moses was pleased 
with Jethro's advice, and did all that he had said. Then Moses let him 
depart ; and Jethro went his Avay into his own land. 

Execute true judgment, and wrong not a widow, or an orphan, a 
stranger, or the poor. — Zech, 1, 9, 10. 

Ben Zoma said : Who is wise ? He who is wiUing to receive instruction 
from every man. — Sayings of the Fathers, 4, L 



41. THE REVELATION ON MOUNT SINAL 

(2 Mos. 19, 20.) 

In the third month * after their departure from Egypt the 
Israelites arrived at Sinai, proceeding from Rephidim into 

1 The day of the month Is not given. The Jewish tradition assigns the giving 
of the law to the fiftieth day after the Passover. 



62 ExoDu§r^ 

the desert of Sinai, ^ and encamping there before the moun- 
tain. 

There Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him out of the 
mountain, saying: Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell 
the children of Israel : You have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I 
bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to Myself. Kow if you will 
obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then you shall be a peculiar 
ti-easure unto Me above all nations ; for all the earth, is Mine. 

And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests, and a holy 
nation. 

These are the words which thou shalt speak to the children of Israel. 
Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before them 
all these words which the Lord commanded him. And the people an- 
swered as if with one voice : All that the Lord has spoken we will do. 

Then the Lord said to Moses, Go to the people, and sanc- 
tify them to-day and to-morrow, and let them wash their 
clothes: for on the third day the Lord will come down in 
the sight of all the people upon Mount Sinai. And thou 
shalt set bounds to the people round about, saying, Take 
heed to yourselves, that you go not up into the mount, or 
touch the border of it: whosoever touches the mount shall 
be surely put to death. 

And it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that 
there were thunders and lightnings, and a heavy cloud upon 
the mountain, and the voice of the trumpet exceedingly 
strong, so that all who were in the camp trembled. And 
Moses brought forth the people out of the camp towards 
God, and they placed themselves at the nether part of the 
mountain. And Mount Sinai was entirely in smoke, because 
the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof 
ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain 
quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded 
very much louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God an- 
swered him by a voice. 

1. I am the Lord thy God, who have brought 
thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of 
bondage. 

2. Thou shalt have no other gods besides Me. 
Thou shalt not make to thee any graven image, 
or any likeness of anything that is in heaven 
above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is 
in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not 
bow down to them, nor serve them; for I the 
Lord thy God am a zealous God, visiting the in- 

» The desert of Sinai la in front of Sinai, or the mount of legislation. Ilorcb 
was the range of which Sinai was one particular mountain. 



EXODUS. 63 

iquity of the fathers upon the children to the third 
and fourth generation, to those who hate Me ; and 
showing mercy to thousands to those who love 
Me, and keep My commandments. 

3. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord 
thy God for falsehood ; for the Lord will not hold 
him guiltless who takes His name for falsehood. 

4. Eemember the Sabbath-day to keep it holy. 
Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work, 
but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord 
thy God ; in it thou shalt not do any work, neither 
thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy man ser- 
vant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy beast, nor thy 
stranger who is within thy gates : For in six days 
the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all 
that is in them, and ceased on the seventh day ; 
wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath-day, and 
hallowed it. 

5. Honor thy father and thy mother ; that thy 
days may be long in the land which the Lord thy 
God giveth thee. 

6. Thou shalt not murder. 

7. Thou shalt not commit adulterv. 

t/ 

8. Thou shalt not steal. 

9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy 
neighbor. 

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, 
thou shalt not covet th}^ neighbor's wife, nor his 
man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor 
his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. 

1 am the Eternal, thy God who teaches thee to profit, who leads thee 
by the way that thou shouldst go. O that thou hadst attended to my 
commandments ! then had thy peace been as the river, and thy righteous- 
ness as waves of the sea. — Is. 48, 17. 

42. CIVIL AND SOCIAL EIGHTS AND COMMAND- 
MENTS. 

(2 Mos. 21, 22, 23.) 
These are the judgments which thou shalt set before them : If thou buy 



64 EXODUS. 

a Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve, and in the seventh he shall go 
out free for nothing. 

He who smites a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death. But 
whoever has not lain in wait for another's life, and God had caused it to 
come to his hand to kill the other, then 1 will appoint thee a place whither 
he shall flee. But he who acts presumptuously against his neighbor, to 
slay him with guile ; thou shalt take him from My altar that he may die. 

He that smites his father,, or his mother, shall be surely put to death. 

He that steals a man, and sells him, or has him in his hand, he shall 
surely be put to death. 

He that curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. 

Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. 

He that sacrifices to any god, save to the Lord only, he shall be utterly 
destroyed. 

Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him, for you were 
strangers in the land of Egypt. 

You shall not afflict any widoAV, or fatherless child. If thou afflict 
them in any wise, and they cry at all to Me, I will surely hear their cry : 
and My wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword ; your 
wives shall be Avidovvs, and your children fatherless. 

If thou lend money to any of My people that is poor by thee, thou 
shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury. 
If thou at all take thy neighbor's raiment to pledge, thou shalt deliver it 
to him towards sunset ; for that is his only clothing ; it sei-ves for a cov- 
ering to his body ; in what shall he wrap himself to sleep 1 and it shall 
come to pass when he cries to Me, that 1 will hear ; for I am gracious. 
Thou shalt not despise God, and the prince among thy people thou shalt 
not curse. You shall be holy men to Me ; neither shall you eat any 
flesh that is torn to pieces in the field ; you shall cast it to the dogs. 

Thou shalt not bring out a false report. Do not offer a wicked man 
thy hand to be an unrighteous witness. Thou shalt not follow the multi- 
tude to evil things, nor answer concerning a dispute to incline thyself 
after many, so as to pervert justice. Neither shalt thou show partiality 
to a poor man in his cause. If thou meet thy enemy's ox or his ass going 
astray, thou shalt surely bring it back to him again. If thou see the ass 
of him that hates thee lying under his burden, beware of leaving it in a 
helpless condition ; thou shalt surely help him, that it may get up again. 
Thou shalt not pervert the right of the poor in his cause. Keep thee far 
from a false matter ; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not ; for I 
will not justify the wicked. 

And thou shalt take no bribes, for the bribe makes seeing men blind 
and perverts the words of the righteous. 

Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger : for you know the heart of the 
stranger, seeing you were strangers in the land of Egypt. Six years 
thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof ; but the 
seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still, that the poor of thy peo- 
ple may eat ; and what they leave the beasts of the field shall eat. In 
like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard, and with thy olivcyard. 

I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous 
judgments.— Ps. 119, 106. 



43. THE GOLDEN CALF. 

(2 Mos. 32.) 

When Moses came and told the people all the words of the 
Lord and all the judgments, they all answered with one 



EXODUS. 65 

voice, and said: All tlie words which the Lord has said will 
we do. 

And the Lord said to Moses: Come up to Me into the 
mountain and be there, and I will give thee tables of stone, and 
a lavv^, and commandments which I have written, to teach 
them. Moses went up and was on the mountain forty days 
and forty nights. Now when the people saw that Moses de- 
layed to come down out of the mountain, they gathered 
themselves together to Aaron, and said to him : Rise, make 
us a god who shall go before us; for as to this Moses, the 
man who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not 
know what has become of him. Aaron replied: Tear off the 
golden ornaments which are in the ears of your wives, of 
your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them to me. 
And all the people tore off their golden ornaments and 
brought them to him. He melted the gold and formed it 
into the shape of a calf. Then the people exclaimed: This 
is thy God, Israel, who brought thee out of Egypt. Aaron 
built an altar before it, and annoimced : To-morrow is a feast 
of the Lord. On the morrow they rose up early and cele- 
brated this feast with burnt-offerings and thank-offerings, 
with sacrificial meals and loud rejoicing and dances. And 
the Lord said to Moses : Go, get thee down ; for thy people, 
which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have cor- 
rupted themselves. They have turned aside quickly out of 
the way which I have commanded them; they have made 
them a molten calf, and worshiped it. 

Moses came down, bringing in his hands the two tablets of 
stone on which the Ten Words of the Covenant had been 
written. Joshua, his devoted servant, awaited him at the 
foot of the mountain. "When he heard the noise of the peo- 
ple as they shouted, he exclaimed: There is a noise of war 
in the camp. But Moses answered: It is not the sound of 
the shout of victory, nor the sound of the cry of defeat; the 
sound of antiphonal songs I hear. But when he came nearer 
to the camp, and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger 
burned, and he threw down the tables of the Covenant and 
broke them at the foot of the mountain, as a sign that Israel 
had broken the Covenant. Then he proceeded to the destruc- 
tion of the idol. He seized the calf, burnt it in fire,^ ground 
it into powder, strewed it upon the water, and made the chil- 
dren of Israel drink of it. Then Moses stood in the gate of 
the camp, and said : Who is on the Lord's side ? let him come to 

1 The stock of the idol beiiij? probal)ly of wood, was burned with the frold 
plate, which covered it. (Accordinsj; to Isa. 40. 19, the castiii:? of jrold for idols 
oonsisted merely in captinc: the metal into a flat sheet, which the goldsmith ham- 
mered out and spread into a coating o^ gold plate,) 



66 EXODUS. 

me ! And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together 
to him. And he said to them: Thus says the Lord God of 
Israel: Put every man his sword at his side, pass on, and 
return from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every 
man his brother, and every man his friend, and every man 
his neighbor. The sons of Levi did according to the word 
of Moses, and there fell of the people that day about three 
thousand men. 

On the morrow Moses said to the people : You have sinned a great sin, 
and now I will go up to the Lord, peradventure I shall make an atone- 
ment for your sin. Now the Lord said to Moses : Hew thee two tables of 
stone like to the first, and I will write upon them the words that were in 
the first tables which thou didst break. And be ready in the morning and 
come up to Mount 8inai, and present thyself there to Me in the top of the 
mount. Then Moses hewed two tables of stone, hke to the first, rose up 
early in the morning, and went up to Mount Sinai. As he stood on the 
summit of the mountain, the Lord descended in a cloud, passing before 
him. He proclaimed : 

The Eternal, the Eternal, a God merciful and gracious, 
long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping 
mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression 
and sin, but who will by no means always leave unpunished, 
visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and 
upon the children's children, to the third and to the fourth 
generation. 

Moses made haste, bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped. 
And he said : If now I have found grace in Thy sight, O Lord, let my 
Lord, I pray thee, go among us (for it is a stiff-necked people), and par- 
don our iniquity and our sin, and take us for Thy inheritance. The Lord 
then renewed through Moses, His covenant with the Israelites : Behold, 
He said, I make a covenanb ; before all thy people I will do marvels, such 
as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation ; and all the peo- 
ple among which thou art shall see the work of the Lord ; for it is a terri- 
ble thing which I will do with thee. 

They had forgotten God their Saviour, who did great deeds in Eg}T)t. 
Then "He thought to exterminate them, had not Moses His chosen one 
stepped into the breach before Him to calm His Avrath, that He should not 
destroy.— Ps. 106, 21, 23. 



44. THE TABERNACLE, ITS FURNITURE, AND 

VESTMENTS OF THE PRIESTS. 

(2 Mos. 25-31.) 

Moses stayed again on Mount Sinai forty days and forty nights. There 
the Lord showed him in a vision a pattern of a holy tabernacle i and com- 
manded him to invite the people to bring free-will offerings for its 

1 It was no fixed building like the Temple which was afterwards built in Canaan, 
but a kind of very graud tent, to move about from place lo place as the Israelitca 
moved. 




Ark of the Covenant (p. 67). 




The Golden Candlestick (p. 67). 




Shew-Bread Table (p. 67). 



Lfvj/ Tifpe P/iolo-Eng.Co., Ballwiore. 



EXODUS. 67 

construction. There the Lord was to be worshipped and He promised to 
dwell there amonj? the people. The people rejoiced at what they heard 
from Moses, and were not wanting in diligence according to their ability ; 
but brought their offerings in the most liberal manner, so that Moses soon 
got more money and material than he wanted, and was obliged to restrain 
the people from bringing anything more. Now Moses at the command of 
the Lord appointed architects over the work, especially Bezaleel the grand- 
son of Hur} and Aholiab of the tribe of Dan. These architects and 
other skilful workmen reared up the tabernacle in the following manner : 

The length of the tabernacle was about fifty-five feet, its breadth ten, 
and its height ten. Its two sides and one end, were of boards of acacia 
wood, covered with thin plates of gold, and fixed in solid sockets of silver. 
These boards were fastened together by transverse bars of gilded wood, 
passing through golden rings. At the entrance were five wooden pillars, 
ornamented with gold, and fixed in sockets of brass. A richly worked 
curtain hung on these pillars. 

For its ceiling there was a covering of fine linen, magnificently em- 
broidered. The colors of the Avork were blue, purple, and scarlet. On 
this ceiling was laid an outside covering made of goat's hair; then upon 
that another covering of ram's skins, dyed red, and outside was a fourth 
covering to resist the weather ; this was made of some other skins. 

This Tabernacle was divided into two apartments. The partition was 
a splendid curtain adorned with the images of the Cherubim, hung on four 
wooden pillars, overlaid with gold. The western part was a cube of ten. 
cubits, and was called the Holy of Holies ; the eastern was twenty cu- 
bits in length and ten in breadth, and was called the Sanctuary, or the 
Holt. In the Sanctuary there was in the northern part of it : 

The Shew-Bread Table, made of acacia wood, and overlaid with 
gold. Around the top was a moulding of gold. It had four rings of the 
same precious metal, in which poles were put to carry it from one place 
to another. There Avere besides on it, dishes, spoons, covers, and bowls, 
all made of pure gold. Twelve unleavened cakes, being the number of 
the tribes of Israel, were placed upon this table in two equal rows, and 
pure frankincense, a sweet perfume, put upon each row. Every Sabbath 
they Avere taken from the table and eaten by the priests, but at once 
replaced by ncAv ones. 

To the south, the Golden Candlestick stood opposite the table. It 
had seven branches for lights, and ornaments beautifully Avorked in the 
shape of flowers. Its lamps AA'ere lighted every evening ; six burnt from 
evening to morning, but one from cA'cning to evening. 

In the centre the Altar of Incense, made of acacia Avood, and com- 
pletely covered Avith plates of gold. It had, like the table,- four rings of 
gold into AA'hich poles AA-ere put to carry it from one place to another. On 
this altar incense was burned morning and evening. 

The Ark, or the Ark of the Covenant, or op the Testimony, 
was placed inside of the Holy of Holies. This ark had the form of an 
oblong chest, and AA^as made of acacia wood, plated Avitli fine gold inside 
and out. Eound it AA-as a moulding of gold, encircling it like a croAvn. 
It had also gold rings to put gilded poles through to carry it. Inside this 
ark were placed the tAvo tablets of the CoA^enant. The covering of the Ark, 
made of pure gold, Avas called the Mercy-seat. At the two ends of the 
Mercy-seat, and forming one whole Avith it, AA'ere placed tAvo golden figures 
Avith Avirigs, called Cherubim. They looked down upon the Mercy-seat, 
with their faces turned tOAA^ard each other, and stretching forth their' wings 
to cover the lid, over Avhich rested the glory of God, Avho Avas thus said 
to dAvell betAveen the Cherubim. Upon the Mercy-seat and before it, the 
high-priest AA'as to sprinkle the blood of the sin-offerings on the day of 
atonement. 



Heuce according to tradition the grandson of Miriam. 



68 EXODUS. 

This Tabernacle stood within an open enclosure called the Court, into 
which the people were admitted, one hundred cubits in length, and fifty- 
broad. It was formed of pillars, twenty on each side, and ten at each end, 
raised on brazen or copper sockets, and supporting, on three sides and 
part of the fourth, curtains of fine-twined white linen yarn, with cords to 
draw them up when necessary. On the east, the breadth of four pillars 
was reserved for a central entrance, where an embroidered curtain was 
suspended from the four pillars. Immediately opposite the entrance was 

The great Altab of Burnt-offering, made of acacia wood, and 
overlaid with plates of brass, to protect it f^m the fire. It was about 
three yards in length and as much in breadth, and about five feet and a 
half high. At every corner it had a spire, or horn. On its top was a 
brazen grate, through which the ashes of the offering fell into a pan below. 
Between the Tabernacle and the Altar stood '"^ 

The Laver for holding water for the priests to wash theio' hands and 
feet before they commenced their sacred duties. It was made of the metal 
mirrors of the women who sei-ved at the door of the Tabernacle, and con- 
sisted of a large basin, and a foot, or pedestal. And the Lord told Moses 
that Aaron and his sons should be Ministers or Priests at the Tab- 
ernacle, and He commanded : Thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron, 
thy brother, for glory and for beauty. 

The garments peculiar to the High Priest were : 

The Robe, (Vj^a) of woven-work, all blue. It had no sleeves, and 
was a little shorter than the white linen tunic worn under it, which 
reached to the ankles. Round the hem at the bottom, there were a num- 
ber of gold bells, to ring Avhen the High Priest went into the Holy Place, 

The Ephod, (11£)J<) of rich materials, gold, blue, purple, and scarlet, 
and fine-twined linen of cunning work. It was a short robe covering the 
upper part of the body, to be fastened to the shoulders by two precious 
stones, on each of which were engraved the names of six tribes of Israel. 
A girdle or belt of the same kind was attached to it. 

The Breast-plate of Judgment, (I32ii/'3T} ]^r\) of the same 
rich material as the Ephod. It was to be doubled, and then it would 
be four-square, a span every way. Upon it were tAvelve precious stones, 
in four rows ; they were very brilliant, and of different colors, and on 
these were engraved the names of the tribes, that they might be upon the 
High Priest's heart. And then in the Breast-Plate of Judgment the 
Urim and Thummim (D"'?3i!}] D'^-IN) were to be put. (We do not 
exactly know what these meant; they were consulted by the High Priest 
on important occasions which concerned the welfare of the Avhole people.) 

The Mitre, (nSJVP), a white turban for his head, with a plate of 
gold fastened by a blue lace to the front, bearing upon it the inscription, 
nirr' 7 ^jp, Holiness to the Lord. 

All these garments were designed to show the dignity of the High 
Priest's office, and the purity Avhich ought to belong to it. The vestments 
of the common priest consisted of Linen Drawers, a White Linen 
Tunic, a Colored Girdle, and a White Turban. 

When all the work of the Tabernacle was finislicd, and the different 
parts of it were ready to be put together, they brought them to Moses, 
and lie looked at all the work, and saw it was done as God had com- 
manded, and Moses blessed them. And it came to pass, in the first 
month, in the second year, on the first day of the month, that Moses 
reared up the Tabernacle. Then the pillar of cloud that went before the 
children of Israel to show them the way, came over the Tabernacle and 
covered it. And the glory of the Lord filled the inside of the Tabcruacie, 
so that Moses could not go into it. 




Higli-Priest^(p. 68). 

Levy Type Photo-Eng.Co., Baltimore 



LEVITICUS: 

OR, 

BOOK OF THE LAWS FOR THE LEYITES AID PRIESTS. 



45. DUTIES OF THE PRIESTS. CONSECRATION 

OF AARON AND HIS SONS. AWFUL 

JUDGMENT OF NADAB AND 

ABIHU. 

(3 Mos. 8, 9, 10.) 

After the Tabernacle was finished, the Lord commanded Moses to bring 
Aaron and his sons to its door to consecrate them or make them priests. 
Then Moses brought them, and called all the people that they might come 
and see what the Lord had commanded him to do. And while they stood 
around the door of the Tabernacle, he took Aaron and his sons, and 
washed them with water, and put on Aaron the beautiful garments that 
had been made for him. Afterwards he poured oil upon his head and 
anointed him. So Aaron was made High Priest (l'\l'r\'02'r\) ^ or 
the Anointed Priest {T\'"0'^'<} ]T\3T\) ,^ and his sons were made Com- 
mon Priests. The High Priest enjoyed great honors and prerogatives. 
No other person could enter the Holy of Holies ; he sacrificed the sin- 
offering for himself and the people ; he consulted the Urim and Thum- 
mim,and all sacred things were under his entire direction. The Common 
Priests prepared and offered the sacrifices in general. They kept a fire 
constantly burning on the altar ibr burnt-offerings, and kept the lamps 
alive in the golden candlestick.^ They examined the people as to diseases 
and practices which made them impure ; they were to preserve and teach 
the law ; they were employed as judges and magistrates. In war they 
carried the ark of the covenant, sounded the silver trumpets, and ani- 
mated the people to combat, Avith the words : Hear, Israel ! approach 
this day to battle against your enemies ; let not your hearts faint, fear 
not, and do not tremble nor be terrified on account of them ; for it is the 
Lord your God who goes with you, to fight with you against your enemies, 
to save you. They also blessed the people with the words : 

The Lord bless thee and keep thee : 

The Lord make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee : 

The Lord lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. 

1 According to the Rabbis, there was one second in dignity to the High Priest, 
whom they call the Sagati, and who often acted iu the High Priest's room. 
(Comp. Jer. 52, 24, where Zephaniah is called njEyDH tnjn, the priest second iu 
rank.) ' 

2 During the wanderings of the Israelites, they had to guard the Tabemacle and 
its utensils ; to wrap them up when the journeys were resumed, and to deliver 
them to the Levites for transport. 



70 LEVITICUS. 

For their services they had tithes, and first-fruits, redemption -money,l 
the shew-breiid, and portions of many of the sacrifices. In later times, 
thirteen cities were assigned for their residence. 

Moses having consecrated Aaron and his sons, offered the sacrifices 
which the Lord commanded. And Aaron and his sons did all things 
that the Lord commanded them ; seven days tliey abode at the door of 
the tabernacle. On the eighth day, Aaron offered sacrifices as the high- 
priest. Then he lifted up his hands toward the people, and blessed them : 
and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. A fire came out 
from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt-offei-ing 
and the fat ; which when all the people saw, they shouted for joy and fell 
on their faces. 

Nadab and Abihu the sons of Aaron, took each of them his censer, 
put fire therein, put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the 
Lord, which He commanded them not. But there went out fire from the 
Lord, and devoured them, and they died. Then ISIoses said to Aaron, 
This is it that the Lord spoke, saying : I will be sanctified in them that 
come nigh Me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron 
held his peace. 

The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away ; blessed be the name of 
the Lord.— Job 1,2L 



46. LAWS CONCERNING THE SACRIFICES AND 

FESTIVALS. 

(3 Mos. 1 ff. and 23.) 

Divine worship in the Tabernacle of the Lord consisted chiefly of offer- 
ing sacrifices of oxen, goats, sheep, in some cases also of pigeons and tur- 
tle-doves. There were however also bloodless offerings. 

The sacrifices were either national or individual. The national sacri- 
fices were offered in the name of the whole people, and every morning and 
every evening the smoke of the national burnt-offerings ascended from the 
great brazen altar. 

From individual sacrifices or offerings no one, not eA'en the poorest, 
was excluded. The sacrifices were partly propitiatory, that is, voluntary 
acts of reverence, in oi-der to secure the favor of God to the devout wor- 
shiper; partly expressive of gratitude for the divine blessings. Of this 
nature were the first fruits. The Israelite might not reap the abundant 
harvest, or gather in the vintage, without first making an oblation of 
thanksgiving to God. Lastly, they were expiatory : every sin, either of 
the nation or the individual, whether committed in ignorance, or from 
wilfuli guilt, hnd its appointed atonement. One day in the year, the 
tenth day of the seventh month, was set apart for the solemn rite of na- 
tional expiation. First a bullock was to be slain, and the blood sprinkled 
within the Holy of Holies itself. Then two goats were to be chosen, lots 
cast upon theni; the one that was assigned to the Lord was to be sacri- 
ficed, the other, on whose head the sins of the whole people were heaped 
by the imprecation of the high-priest, was taken beyond the camp and sent 
into the desert. 

Concerning the festivals in general the Lord said to Moses : These are 
my appointed times on Avhich you shall call holy convocations.^ 

' The ro;loinption-monoy was levied on acconut of pprson:*, animals, or X\\m^ 
devoted to God (Lev. 27), and for the first-boru of liicu aud beasts.— Numb. IS, 14, 
18. 

a Meetings called for social worship. 




Altar of Burnt-offering (p. 68). 




Altar of Incense (p. 67). 

L«vif Type Photo- Bng. Co., Btdtimore, 



LEVITICUS. VI 

Six days shall work be done ; but the seventh day is the sabbath of 
rest, a holy convocation : you shall do no work therein. 

In the fourteenth day of the first month, between the evening (i. e. be- 
fore sunset) is the Lord's Passovek. And on the fifteenth day of the same 
month is the Feast of Unleavened Brkad to the Lord; seven days you 
must eat unleavened bread. In the first day and in the seventh day you 
shall have a holy convocation ; you shall do no servile work^ therein. But 
you shall offer an otfering made by fire to the Lord seven days. 

When you shall have come into the land which I give to you, and shall 
reap the harvest thereof, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first-fruits of 
your harvest to the priest ; and he shall wave^ the sheaf before the Lord, 
to be accepted for you : on the morrow after the Sabbath^ the priest shall 
wave it. 

And you shall count to you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from 
the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave-offering seven Sabbaths. 
Even to the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall you number fifty 
days ; and you shall otFer a new meat-oifering to the Lord. And you 
shall proclaim on that day, the Feast of Weeks, a holy convocation 
to you : you shall do no servile work therein : it shall be a statute for 
ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.* 

In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall you have a 
Sabbath, a Memorial of the Trumpet Blast, a holy convocation, you 
shall do no servile work therein ; but you shall ofier an offering made by 
fire to the Lord.^ 

Surely on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a Day op 
Atonement ; it shall be a holy convocation to you, and you shall afflict 
your souls,*^ and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. And you 
shall do no work in that same day ; for it is a day of atonement, to make 
an atonement for you before the Lord your God. For whatsoever soul it 
be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from 
among his people. And whatsoever soul it be that does any work in that 
same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people. It shall 
be .to you a Sabbath of rest, and you shall afflict your souls : in the ninth 
day of the month at even, from even to even, shall you celebrate your 
Sabbath. 

The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Taber- 
nacles for seven days to the Lord. On the first day shall be a holy convo- 
cation : you shall do no servile work therein. Seven days you shall offer an 
offering made by fire to the Lord ; on the eighth day shall be a holy convo- 
cation to you, and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord ; it is 
a solemn assembly ; and you shall do no servile work therein. And you 
shall take to you on the first day the fruit of .goodly trees,"^ shoots of 

1 Servile work signifies occupation in connection with trade or one's social 
calUn^. » 

2 Present it symbolically to God by the ceremony of waving, acknowledging tbat 
we owe the blessing of the harvest to the grace of God. 

3 The morrow after the Sabbath signifies the next day after the first day of the 
feast of Mazzoth, i. e. the 16th Abib (Nisan). A small minority of Rabbinical in- 
terpreters maintain that the Sabbath here mentioned is the weekly Sabbath. 

* Tradition considers it as a commemoration of the giving of the Law on Mount 
Sinai. 

5 To call the congregation into remembrance before God, that He might turn 
towards it His favor and grace. The seventh month of the year, like the seventh 
day of the week, was consecrated as a Sabbath or Sabbatical month. According 
to tradition, it was the first day of the civil year in use before the Exodus, and 
was observed as the festival of the New Year. 

' To "afflict (bow, humble) the soul," by restraining the earthly appetites, 1. e. 
to fast. 

' According to Josephus and the Kabbinists it denotes specifically the citron. 



72 LEVITICUS. 

palms .and branches of leafy trees, and willows ^ of the brook; and you 
shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days. You shall dwell in 
booths-^ seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: 
That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to 
dwell in booths, when 1 bi-ought them out of the land of Egypt: 1 am 
the Lord your God. And Moses declared to the children of Israel the 
feasts of the Lord. 

Your new moons and your appointed feasts My soul hateth ; they are a 
trouble to Me ; I am weary to bear them. And when you spread forth 
your hands I will hide Mine eyes from yon ; yea, when you make many 
prayers I will not hear; your hands ai'c full of blood. Wash ye, make 
you clean ; put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes ; cease 
to do evil. — Isa. 1, 14-16. 



47. HOLINESS. CONDUCT TOWARDS GOD AND 

MAN. 

(3 Mos. 19.) 

As righteousness tends to life, so he who pursues evil pursues it to his 
death.— Prov. 11, 19. 

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, speak to all the congregation of 
the children of Israel, and say to them : You shall be uoly ; for I the 
Lord your God am holy. 

You shall fear each man his mother and his father, and keep my Sab- 
baths : I am the Loi'd your God. 

Turn not to idols, nor make for you molten gods : I am the Lord vour 
God. 

And when you reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly 
reap the corner of thy field, nor gather the gleanings of thy harvest. And 
thy vineyard thou shalt not glean, nor gather the leavings of thy vine- 
yard, thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger : I am the Lord 
your God. 

You shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another. 

And you shall not sAvear by My name to a lie, nor profane the name of 
thy God : I am the Lord. 

Thou shalt not oppress thy neighbor, nor rob him, nor shalt thou keep 
the wages of a hireling with thee till the morning. 

Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling-block before the 
blind; but shalt fear thy God : I am the Lord. ' 

You shall not do wrong in judgment, nor respect the person of the poor, 
nor honor the person of the mighty ; in righteousness shalt thou judge thy 
neighbors. 

Thou shalt not go about as a tale-bearer among thy people, nor stand 
by idly when thy neighbor's life is in danger : I am the Lord. 

Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart : thou shalt surely rebuke 
thy neighbor, and not bear sin on his account. 

Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy 
people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the Lord. 

You shall not eat with blood; you shall not take omens,* nor use 

» Accordinq: to tradition every Israelite at the feast of Tabernacles carried iuone 
hand a bundle of branches (called lulab) and in the other a citron. 

^ Booth, according to tradition a structure of boards, covered with bouphs. 

3 Take omens, observe objects and events, and interpret them as signs of the 
purpose of heaven. Use chartns. set forms of words in a mysterious manner, as 
if they secured the power ot a supernatural being to accomplish the end in view. 



LEVITICUS. 73 

charms. You shall not malce any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor 
print any mai'ks upon you : I am the Lord.^ 

Thou shalt rise up before a hoary head, and honor the face of an old 
man, and fear thy God : 1 am the Lord. 

And if a stranger sojoui-n with you in your land, you shall not oppress 
him. As one born among you shall be to you the stranger, that sojourns 
Avitli you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for you were strangers in 
the land of Egypt : I am the Lord your God. Thou shalt do no wrong 
in judgment, in mete-yard, in weight, or in measure. Just balances, just 
weights, a just ephah,- and a just hin^ shall you have : I am the Lord 
your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt ! 

The work of righteousness shall be peace ; and the eflfect of righteous- 
ness, quietness and assurance forever. — ^Isa, 32, 17. 



48. THE SABBATICAL AND JUBILEE YEARS. 

(3 Mos. 25.) 

"When Israel came into the land which the Lord gave to them they were 
to sanctify it to the Lord by the observance of a Sabbath. As the nation 
at large, with its laborers and beasts of burden, was to keep a Sabbath or 
day of rest every seventh day of tbe week, so the land which they tilled 
was to observe a Sabbath to the Lord. Six years they were to cultivate 
the corn-fields, vineyards, and olive-yards, and gather in their produce ; 
but in the seventh year the land was to keep a Sabbath of rest, a Sabbath 
consecrated to the Lord ; and in this year the land was neither to be tilled 
nor reaped. The produce arising without tilling or sowing was to be a 
common good ; it was to belong to the poor and needy, but the owner was 
not forbidden to partake of it also. 

At the expiration of the time of seven year-Sabbaths, that is to say, 49 
years, the blast of the far-sounding honi (shophar^) was to announce to 
the people the entrance of the year of jubilee. This year was to bring 
liberty throughout the land to all that dAvelt therein, deliverance from 
bondage, return to their property and family, and release from the labor 
of cultivating the land. All estates which had been bought were restored 
to their first owners, so that no family could be finally made poor by a 
father's selling the property for ever. Slaves, with their wives and chil- 
dren were set free. 

1 The cnstom of scratching the arms, hands, and face as tokens of mourning for 
the dead existed among many oriental peoples, and is practised by the Arabs, 
Persians, and Abyssinians of the present day. The orientals are also very fond of 
tattooing. 

2 EphaJi a measure of grain ; Hin, a measure of liquids. 

3 The Mishna says that the horn of the wild goat was used on this occasion.-- 
Rosh Hash., lU. 5. 



ISrUMBEES, 

WHICH MEANS : 

THE BOOK OF NUMBERmG THE ISRAELITES. 



49. MOSES NUMBERS THE PEOPLE. PURIFICA- 
TION AND CONSECRATION OF THE LEVITES. 

(4 Mos. 1.— 8.) 

Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons ; 
and now the Lord thy God has made thee as the stars of heaven for mul- 
titude.— 5 Mos. 10, 22. 

In the second year after Israel had come out of Egypt, Moses was 
ordered to number the people. More than a year the camp of the Israel- 
ites had been at Mount Sinai. But now the time Avas near when they 
should leave this encampment and go on their journey towards the land of 
Canaan. 

As they would have to fight against their enemies when they came into 
Canaan, the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron to count the men in 
the different tribes who were able to be soldiers and go out to war. 

The men of the tribe of Levi were not numbered with the others, be- 
cause the Levites were exempted from military service, and numbered 
separately. The other tribes were twelve in number, eacli descended 
from one of the sons of Jacob, or of Joseph. These were their names : 
the tribes of Reuben, Simeon, Judah, Zebulon, Issachar, Dan, Gad, Asher, 
Naphtali, Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin. 

Moses and Aaron numbered the people, according to the command of 
the Lord, and the following Avas the result : 

Reuben 46,.'>00 

Simeon 59,300 

Gad 45,650 

Judah 74,600 

Issachar 54,400 

Zebulon 57,400 

Ephraim 40,500 

Manasseh 32,200 

Benjamin 35,400 

Dan 62,700 

Asher 41,500 

Naphtali 53,400 

Total of men capable of bearing arms 603,550 

And after the other tribes had been numbered, the Lord said to Moses -. 
Thou shalt bring the Levites before the tabernacle, and gather the whole 
assembly of the children of Israel together. And the children of Israel 
shall put their hands upon the Levites, and Aaron shall offer thom for an 





Common Priest (p. 68). 



Levite (p. 75). 




Laver (p. 68). 

Levy Type Photo- Eiiff. Co., Baltimore. 



NUMBERS. 75 

offoiing of the children of Israel, that they may execute the service of the 
Lord. Instead of the first-born i of all the children of Israel have I taken 
tlitj Levites to Me, and have given them as a gift to Aaron and his sons, to do 
tlie service of the tabernacle, and help and wait upon Aaron and his sons. 
Thus the Levites were separated from among the other tribes, and sancti- 
fied in a solemn manner to the service of God, as assistants to the priests. 
The outward indication of this was given in the inteiTncdiate position 
appointed to tliem in the encampment. They became the guardians 
around the tabernacle, which no one else might come near under pain of 
death. When on the march, no hands but theirs might strike the tent at 
the commencement of the day's journey, or carry the parts of its structure 
during it, or pitch the tent once again when they halted. They were to 
bear all the vessels of the sanctuaiy, after the priests had covered them 
with the dark-blue cloth which Avas to hide them from all profane gaze. 
They cleansed the sacred vessels. To them belonged also the office of 
preserving, transcribing and interpreting the law, and in later times that 
of writing hymns, singing psalms, and playing musical instruments.^ 
Their service was to last from thirty ^ years of age to fifty. In return 
for their services they received tithes or the tenth part of all the produce 
of the land, both animal and vegetable; but from these they were to set 
apart a tithe for the priests.'* There Avere besides, in later times, abodes 
assigned to them in forty-eight cities ^ scattered over the tribes on both 
sides of Jordan. 

At the commandment of the Lord the Le-vntes were numbered, and there 
were found eight thousand fiA'e hundred and eighty men, who, after having 
been installed, went to wait on the priests, and to do the work at the tab- 
ernacle. They were divided into three families : the Kohathites, the Gei^- 
shonites, the Merarites. To each of them their respective duties were 
assigned. 

ISow twelve princes came, one of each tribe, bringing presents to the 
tabernacle. They brought six covered wagons, and twelve oxen to draw 
them; also dishes, bowls, and spoons, made of silver and gold, to be used 
at the tabernacle. Then Moses divided the wagons among the Levites, to 
carry different parts of the tabernacle in, when the children of Israel 
should go on their journey. To the Gershonites, who had to carry the 
lighter things, he gave two wagons and two yoke of oxen ; when they 
had loaded these, they must carry the rest, if any remained, upon their 
shoulders. The Merarites, who had the heavy carriage, or such things as 
were more solid and Aveighty, had four wagons and four yoke of oxen. But 
to the sons of Kohath Moses gaA'e no wagons, for they had the charge of the 
ark, table, candlestick, altars, and the like, which were to be carried upon 
their shoulders ; for those sacred things were not to be drawn by beasts. 
Now the whole host Avas divided into four camps, which surrounded the 
tabernacle during a halt, in the following order : 

1 The First-Born preserved, when the Egyptian first-born Avere destroj'ecl, Avere 
regarded as holy to the Lord. Now at the census there were found 2-2.27.3 first-born 
of Israel: for these, then, the Levites, nearly equal in number, Avere to be taken in 
redemption, five shekels apiece being paid to the priests as redemption-money 
for the overplus. 

' In post-exilian times there were inferior servants of the sanctuary, called 
Nethinim (the given, the devoted), who Avere subordinate to the Levites. 

3 According to Numb. 8, 24, from tAventy-fifth year. 

4 3 Mos. 27, 30-32; 4 Mos. IS, 20, 32. 

5 The levitical cities did not cease to belong to the tribe within Avhich they Avere 
situated; hence the expression: and the Levite in thy gates (5 Mos. 14, 17, 18, 6. 8.) 
And for the same reason the Levites appear to have been reckoned in some re- 
spects at least, to belong to the tribe Avithin Avhich they resided. Judg. 17, 7. 
(Comp. page 126, Note 2.) And thus the Levites are never reckoned a thh-teenth 
tribe, but are viewed as being absorbed in the 12 tribes among Avhom they Avere 
distributed. 



76 



NUMBERS. 



Manasseh, 



WEST. 

Epkraim. 



Benjamin. 



SOUTH 



Gershon. 


■5 




g 


3 


TABERNACLE. 


^ 


W 






Moses, Aaron, 


and the Priests. 



a NORTH. 



Issachar. 



Judah. 

EAST. 



Zebulon. 



In the same order also they marched. In front of the army the ark 
was borne. When it was lifted up to precede the advancing army, Moses 
exclaimed : Kise up, Lord, and let Thy enemies be scattered, and let 
them that hate Thee flee before Thee ; and when the ark rested he said : 
Restore, Lord, the myriads of the hosts of Israel ! 

In the first place went the standard, or colors, of the camp of Judah, 
and they had for their captain, Nachshon, the son of Aminadab. Then 
there was the tabernacle, borne by the two families of the Levites, the 
sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, with their six wagons. The 
second squadron was Reuben's, with its flag flying, and its captain ; and 
this was followed by the Kohathites, bearini^ the sacred furniture of the 
tabernacle. Then, third in order alter the ark, followed Ephraim's squad- 
ron; and last, the standard of the camp of the children of Dan set for- 
ward, which was the rear-ward, or gathering body, of all the camps through- 
out their hosts. 

And now when the children of Isi'ael were expected to remove, before 
they marched, the Lord commanded to make two silver trumpets ; these, 
when both were blown, Avere to call the whole congregation together ; and 
when one only was blown, it was to call the chiefs together. "When any 
alarm was blown, or, instead of one long and continued sound, the notes 
of one trumpet were made to rattle, the people were to march. These 
trumpets led the warriors to battle ; they were also to be blown on the day 
of gladness and thanksgiving, on solemn days, or festivals, as the Passover, 
Pentecost, and Feast of IBooths, in the beginnings of their mouths, 
especially on the first day of the seventh month, which was a feast of 
blowing trumpets : and lastly these trumpets were to be blown over the 
burnt-offerings, and over the sacrifices of their peace-offerings, as express- 
ing joy for the acceptance of them. 

On the twentieth day of the second month of the second year, the cloud 



NUMBERS. 77 

was lifted up from the tabernacle. This was the sign of departure. For 
as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle, they rested in their tents ; 
but whenever the cloud was taken up, whether it was in the day or in the 
night, they went on their journey. As long as the cloud moved they fol- 
lowed, but whenever it stopped they stopped, and made their camp in that 
place. Now the cloud rose, the alarm was blown by the two silver trum- 
pets, and each of the four camps set forward in its appointed order, and 
the host followed the cloud into the Avilderness of Paran. 

We will shout for joy because of Thy help, and in the name of our God 
will we raise our banners. — Fs. 20, 6. 



50. THE PEOPLE CLAMOR FOR FLESH. 
SEDITION OF MIRIAM AND AARON. 

(4 Mos. 11, 12.). 

After a three days* march, the Israelites arrived at a resting-place ; but 
the people began at once to be discontented with their situation. The iirst 
impulse to this came from the mixed multitude (the mob) that had come 
out of Egypt along with the Israelites. They felt and expressed a longing 
for the better food which they had enjoyed in Egypt, and urged, on the 
Israelites to cry out, saying : We remember the fish which we got in 
Egypt for nothing, 1 the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and 
the garlic ; now our soul is dried away, we see nothing else before us but 
this manna. When Moses heard the people complaining in all the fami- 
lies in front of every tent, he was greatly displeased, and he brought his 
complaint to the Lord, and said : Wherefore hast Thou aiHicted Thy ser- 
vant ? and wherefore have I not found favor in Thy sight, to lay upon me 
the burden of all this people 1 Whence should I have flesh to give to all 
this people 1 for they weep to me, saying : Give us flesh, that we may eat. 
I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. 
And if Thou deal thus with me, I pray Thee kill me out of hand, if I 
have found favor in Thy sight ; and let me not see the calamity to which 
I must eventually succumb. And the Lord said to Moses : Gather to Me 
seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest as elders and offi- 
cers of the people, and bring them to the tabernacle of the congregation. 
And say thou to the people : Sanctify yourselves against to-morrow, and 
you shall eat flesh. You shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five 
days, neither ten days, nor twenty days, but even a whole month ; until 
it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome to you : because 
you have despised the Lord who is among you, and have wept before 
Him, saying : Why came we forth out of Egypt 1 Moses then went 
out, and told the people the words of the Lord, and gathered seventy 
men of the elders of the people, and set them around the tabernacle. 
And the Lord came doAvn in a cloud, and spoke to him, and took of 
the spirit that was upon him, and gave it to the seventy elders ; and Avhen 
the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But there remained two of 
the seventy chosen ones in the camp, Eldad and Medad; and the spirit 
rested upon them, and they prophesied in the camp. And Joshua the son 
of Nun, the servant of Moses from his youth, said : My lord Moses, for- 
bid them. But Moses answered him : Art thou jealous for me? Would 
that all the people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His spirit 
upon them. Moses returned with the elders into the camp. Now a wind 
arose from the Lord, and brought quails overfrom the sea, and threw them 

J The abundance of fish in the Nile, is attested by both classical writers and 
modern travelers. 



•78 NUMBEES. 

over the camp, about a day's journey (three thousand five hundred yards) 
wide on both sides, and about two cubits (three and one-half feet) above 
the surface.'^ The people gathered eagerly, and ate to their full satisfac- 
tion. And while the flesh was yet betwotn their teeth, ere it was con- 
sumed, the wrath of the Lord was kindled against them, and the Lord 
smote them Avith a very great plague. Hence the place received the name 
of Kibroth-hataava/i, that is : graves of greediness. And the people 
journeyed on again, and rested shortly afterwards in Hazeroth. 

And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian 
woman whom he had married.^ And they said : Has the Lord then 
spoken only by Moses ? has He not spoken also by us ? And the Lord 
heard it, and He spoke suddenly to Moses, and to Aaron, and to Miriam : 
Come out you three to the tabernacle of the congregation. And they 
came out. And the Lord came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood 
in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam : and they 
both went forth. And He said : Hear My words : If there be a prophet 
among you, I the Lord make Myself known to him in a vision, and speak 
to him in a dream : Not so My servant Moses : he is approved in My 
whole house. Mouth to mouth I speak to him, visibly, and not in dark 
speeches ; and the similitude of the Lord he beholds : Wherefore then 
were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses? After this 
address, the wrath of the Lord burned against them, and He withdrew 
Himself. And when the cloud had departed from off the tabernacle, 
behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow. And Aaron said to Moses : 
Alas, my lord, I beseech thee, lay not this sin upon us, for Ave have done 
foolishly. Then Moses cried to the Lord, saying : Heal her, Lord, I beseech 
Thee. And the Lord said to Moses : If her father had but spit in her 
face, would she not be ashamed seven days ? Let her be shut out from the 
camp seven days, and after that let her be received in again. And Miriam 
was shut out from the camp seven days : and the people journeyed not 
till Miriam was brought in again. 

A rebelHous man seeks only evil ; therefore a cruel messenger shall be 
sent against him. — Pro v. 17, 11. 



51. DISPATCH OF THE SPIES TO CANAAN. 

(4 Mos. 13, 14.) 

They despised the pleasant land, they believed not His 
word. They murmured in their tents, they hearkened not to 
the voice of the Lord. Then He lifted up His hand against 
them to cast them down in the desert. — Ps. 106, 24-26. 

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Send thou men, that 
they may search the land of Canaan, which I give to the 
children of Israel: one from each tribe, every one a ruler 
among them. And Moses did accordingly, and said to the 
chosen men : Go up into the mountain and see the land, what 
it is: and the people that dwell therein, whether they be 
strong or weak, few or many ; and what the land is that they 
dwell in, whether it be good or bad ; and what cities they be 

1 The quails flew about two cubits high, and were easily secured by the people, 
s Besides Zipporah. or probably after her death, Moses had coutractcd a second 
marriage with an Ethiopian woman. 



NUMBERS. 79 

that they dwell in, whether in open unwalled villages, or in 
strongholds ; and what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, 
whether there be wood therein, or not, and take boldly of 
the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the 
first ripe grapes. So they went up from the wilderness of 
Zin, ^ and searched the whole land of Canaan from the south 
to the north, and came into the neighborhood of Hebron. 
In the valley of Eshcol they cut down a vine branch with 
grapes upon it which two men carried upon a pole;^ and 
they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs. After 
forty days they returned from searching the land, and brought 
back word to Moses and "Aaron and to all the congregation, 
and showed them the fruit of the land. And they told him, 
and said: We came to the land whither thou sentest us, and 
surely it flows with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of 
it. Nevertheless the people that dwell in the land, are 
strong and of great stature, and the cities are fortified, and 
very great: and moreover, we saw there the giants, the chil- 
dren of Anak, and we were in our own eyes and in their eyes 
as grasshoppers. And all the congregation lifted up their 
voice and wept. Joshua the son of Nun, however, and 
Caleh, the son of Jephunneh, who were of them that searched 
the land, said: The land, which we passed through to search 
it, is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delight in us, 
then He will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land 
which flows with milk and honey. Only rebel not ye against 
the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land ; for they are 
our food, their shadow ^ is departed from them, and the Lord 
is with us: fear tnem not. But all the congregation bade 
stone them with stones, and they said one to another: Let us 
appoint a captain and go back to Egypt. At that moment 
the glory of the Lord appeared in the tabernacle of the con- 
gregation before all the children of Israel. 

And the Lord said to Moses: How long will this people 
provoke Me ? and how long will it be ere they believe Me, 
for all the signs which I have showed among them ? I will 
smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will 
make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they. 
Moses, however, prayed to the Lord, and said: I beseech 
Thee, show Thyself mighty by verifying Thy word : The Lord 
IS Long-suffering, and of Great Mercy, forgiving Iniquity 
AND Transgression! Forgive, I beseech Thee, the iniquity of 

1 The northeastern portion of the wilderness of Paran. 

2 Bunches of grapes are still met with in Palestine, weighing as much as eight, 
ten, or twelve pounds ; the grapes themselves being as large as our smaller plums. 

3 We can swallow them up and easily destroy them. Shadow— &]xQ\iQX and pro- 
tection of God. 



80 NUMBERS. 

this people, according to the greatness of Thy mercy, and as 
Thou hast forgiven this people from Egypt even until now I 
And the Lord said: I have pardoned according to thy word: 
But as truly as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the 
glory of the Lord; all those men who have seen My glory, 
and My miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, 
and have tempted Me now these ten times, and have not 
hearkened to My voice; surely they shall not see the land 
which I swore to their fathers, neither shall any of them 
that provoked Me see it. Their carcasses shall fall in this wil- 
derness, and all that were numbered from twenty years old 
and upward, shall not come into the land. Save Caleb the 
son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun, because they 
had another spirit with them, and followed Me fully, them I 
will bring into the land, and their seed shall possess it. And 
your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years. 
After the number of the days that you have searched the 
land, forty days shall you bear your iniquity (for each day a 
year), and know My turning away from you. And those 
men that brought up the evil report upon the land died 
shortly afterwards. And the people mourned greatly when 
they heard all these words of the Lord. 

They rose up early in the morning, and went up to the top 
of the mountain, saying: Lo, we are here, and will go up to 
the place which the Lord has promised: for we have sinned. 
And Moses said : Wherefore do you transgress the command- 
ment of the Lord ? It shall not prosper. But the people 
despised the warning of Moses and rushed forward ; then the 
Canaanites came down and smote them and discomfited them. 

The righteous shall never be moved ; but the wicked shall not dwell in 
the land.— Prov. 10, 30. 



52. REBELLION OF KORAH AND HIS 
FOLLOWERS. 

(4 Mo8. 16, 17.) 

My son, fear thou Qod and the King, and associate not -with them that 
are given to change ! — Prov. 24, 21. 

Now Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and On, rose up before 
Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, 250 princes of 
the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown: 
and they gathered themselves together against Moses and 
against Aaron, and said to them: You take too much upon 
you; for all the congregation are holy, every one of them, 
and the Lord is among them: wherefore then do you lift up 
yourselves above the congregation of the Lord ? And when 



NUMBERS. 81 

Moses heard it, he fell upon his face : and he spoke to Korah 
and to all his company, saying: To-morrow the Lord will 
show who is His and holy, and will let him come near to 
Him, and he whom He chooses will draw near to Him. 
This do; Take you censers, Korah, and all his company; and 
put fire therein, and put incense in them before the Lord to- 
morrow: and it shall be that the man whom the Lord does 
choose, he shall be the holy one: you take too much upon 
you, you sons of Levi! 

And Moses said to Korah : Hear me, sons of Levi, is it too little for you, 
that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel, 
to bring you near to Himself to do the service of the Tabernacle of the 
Lord, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them 1 and 
must you seek the priesthood also ? Lastly Moses sent to call Dathan 
and Abiram, the sons of Eliab : but they said : We will not come up. Is 
it too little, that thou hast brought us up out of a land that flows with 
milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that thou wilt be always 
playing the Lord over us ? Moreover, thou hast not brought us into a 
land flowing with milk and honey, or given us fields and vineyards for an 
inheritance. Wilt thou put out the eyes of these men ? We will not 
come up. Moses, deeply mortified, said to the Lord : Respect not Thou 
their offering. I have not taken one ass from them, nor have I done harm 
to one of them. 

On the following morning, Korah and his seditious compan- 
ions assembled before the Tabernacle, each bearing in his hand 
a censer filled with incense. The glory of the Lord appeared 
to all the congregation. And the Lord spoke to Moses and 
to Aaron, saying: Separate yourselves from among this con- 
gregation, I will destroy them in a moment. But they fell 
upon their faces and exclaimed : God, Thou God of the spir- 
its of all flesh! this one man has sinned, and wilt Thou be 
wrathful with all the congregation? 

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the con- 
gregation, sajring: Get you up from about the dwellings of 
Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. And Moses rose up, and went 
to Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed 
him. And he spoke to the congregation, saying: Depart 
from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of 
theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins. So they went 
away from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on 
every side: and Dathan and Abiram came out, and stood in 
the door of their tents, and their wives, and their sons, and 
their little children. And Moses said: Hereby you shall 
know that the Lord has sent me to do all these works, and 
that I have not done them of my own mind. If these men 
die the common death of all men, or if they be punished 
with the punishment of all men, then the Lord has not sent 
me. But if the Lord makes a new thing, and the earth 
open its mouth, and swallows them up, with all that apper- 



82 NUMBERS. 

tains to them, and they go down alive into hell, then shall 
you understand that those men have despised the Lord. 
And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all 
these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under 
them: And the earth opened its mouth, and swallowed them 
and their houses, and all the men that appertained to Korah, 
and all their goods. They, and all that appertained to them, 
went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them : 
and they perished from among the congregation. And all 
Israel that were round about them, fled at the cry of them : 
for they said : Lest the earth swallow us up also. And there 
came out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two hun- 
dred and fifty men that offered incense. 

Now the Lord ordered Moses to get the twelve rods of the trihes, and to 
lay them up in the Tabernacle before the Testimony, the rod of the tribe 
of Levi to be marked with Aaron's name. Moses did so, and when he 
went on the morrow into the Tabernacle, behold the rod of Aaron was 
budded, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds. And Aaron's won- 
derful rod was shown to the people, and at the Lord's command taken 
back into the sanctuary, and preserved before the Testimony for a sign for 
the rebellious, to silence their murmuriugs before God. 

The face of the Lord is against the evil doers, to cut off their remem- 
brance from the earth. — Ps. 37, 17. 



63. ENCAMPMENT AT KADESH. DEATH OF 
MIRIAM. AARON'S DEATH. 

(4 Mo8. 20.) 

There is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. 
— Eccl. 7, 20. 

They angered Him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with 
Moses for their sakes : Because they provoked his spirit, so that he spoke 
unadvisedly with his hps.— Ps. 106,' 32, 33. 

Then came the children of Israel into the desert of Zin in 
the first month; and the people abode in Kadesh,* and Miriam 
died and was buried there. And there was no water for 
the congregation: and they gathered themselves together 
against Moses and against Aaron. And the people chode 
with Moses, and spoke, saying: Would that we had died 
when our brethren died before the Lord! Why have you 
brought the congregation of God into this desert, to perish 
here with our cattle ? Why have you brought us out of 
Egypt into this evil land, where there is no seed, no fig-trees 
and pomegranates, no vines, and no water to drink ? And 
Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to 
the door of the tabernacle of the congregation and they fell 
upon their faces: and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. 

1 Kadeeh forms part of the deeert of Zin on the wc8t. 



NUMBERS. 83 

And tlie Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Take the rod, and 
gather thou the assembly together, thou and Aaron thy broth- 
er, and speak ye to the rock before their eyes; and it shall give 
forth its water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out 
of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their 
beasts drink. And Moses took the rod, and he and Aaron 
gathered the congregation together before the rock and he 
said to them: Hear now, you rebels; shall we fetch you 
water out of this rock ? And Moses lifted up his hand, and 
with his rod smote the rock twice, ^ and the water came out 
abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts 
also. 

And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: Because you have 
not trusted firmly in Me to sanctify Me before the eyes of the 
children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this congre- 
gation into the land which I have given them. This is the 
water of strife, about which the children of Israel strove with 
the Lord, and He sanctified Himself before them. 

And the children of Israel journeyed from Kadesh,and came 
to Mount Hor."^ And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron 
in Mount Hor, by the coast of the land of Edom, saying: 
Aaron shall be gathered to his peoples ; for he shall not enter 
into the land which I have given to the children of Israel, 
because you rebelled against My word at the water of Meri- 
bah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up 
to mount Hor: And strip Aaron of his priestly garments, 
and put them upon Eleazar his son: and Aaron shall be 
gathered to his people, and shall die there. Moses did as 
the Lord commanded, and Aaron died there on the top of 
the mount: then Moses and Eleazar came down from the 
mount. And when all the congregation saw that Aaron had 
expired, they mourned for Aaron thirty days, even all the 
house of Israel. 

The righteous has hope eyen in death. — ^Prov. 14, 32. 



54. CONQUEST IN THE EAST OF THE JORDAN. 

BALAK DISAPPOINTED IN 

CURSING ISRAEL. 

(4 Mos. 21, 4.) 

O my people, remember now for what Balak consulted Balaam, and 
what he answered him ; that ye may know the righteousness of the Lord. 
— Mic. 6, 5. 

They journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the 

^He struck the rock twice, as if it depended upon human exertion, and not 
upon the power of God alone. 
* A peak in the range of Mount Seir, south of the famous town Petra. 



84 NUMBERS. 

Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom:^ and the soul of the 
people was much discouraged because of the way, and they 
spoke against God. And the Lord sent fiery serpents among 
the people, and they bit them and many of Israel died. 
Then Moses prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to him: 
Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it 
shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he 
looks upon it, shall live. Thus Moses did. Now when they 
were about to pass through the land of the Amorites, Sihon, 
their king, gathered all his people together, and went out, 
and fought against Israel. And Israel smote him with the 
edge of the sword, and possessed his land. The Israelites 
then turned towards the north and took the road to Bashau ' 
and Og, the king of Bashan, went out against them, he, and 
all his people, to battle at Edrei. But they smote him, and 
his sons, and all his people, until there was none left him 
alive: and they possessed his land. 

And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched in the plains of 
Moab, upon the border of the promised laud, from which they were only 
separated by the Jordan. And when Balak, the king of this land, saw all 
that Israel had done to the Amorites, he Avas sore afraid of the people, and 
gent messengers, therefore, to Balaam the son of Beor, to Pethor,^ which 
was on the river of Euphrates, to call him, saying : Behold, there is a peo- 
ple come out from Egypt : behold, they cover the face of the earth, and 
they abide over against me : Come now, therefore, I pray thee, curse me 
this people ; for they are too mighty for me : peradventure I shall prevail, 
that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land : for 
I know that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest 
is cursed. Balaam, however, declined the invitation, for God said to him : 
Thou shalt not go with them ; thou shalt not curse the people ; for they 
are blessed. But when a second and still more imposing embassy of Mo- 
abite princes appeared before him, God gave him permission to go with 
them, on the condition, however, that he should do nothing but what God 
should tell him. When Balak, therefore, came to meet him, Balaam ex- 
plained to him, that he could only speak the word which the Lord would 
put into his mouth. On the morrow Balak took Balaam, and brought 
him up to the heights sacred to Baal,'^ from which he could see the end 
of the Israelitish camp. There they built seven altars, upon each of which 
they sacrificed an ox and a ram. And Balaam took up his parable, and 
said: 

From Aram hath Balak brought me, 

The king of Moab from the mountains of the East, 

Saying : Come, curse me Jacob, 

And come, menace Israel. 

How shall I curse whom God hath not cursed? 

Or how shall I menace whom God has not menaced? 

' Thev went down the Araba, (wliich runs between steep mountain-walls ftom 
the Dead Sea to the Red Sea) to the head of the Elanitic Gull'. 

=2 The Kingdom of 0<? embraced the northern half of Gilead, the modern Jebel 
A,jhin, the modem plain of Jazilan and Hmtran. 

3 A city in Aram or Mesopotamia. 

* Baal, "Lord," "husband," was an idol of the Chaldisans, Phoenicians, and 
Canaanites. Baal probably represented the sun. 



NUMBERS. 85 

For from the top of the rocks I see him, 

And from the hills I behold him : 

Lo, it is 11 people that dwelleth alone, 

And that is not reckoned among the nations. 

Who can count the dust of Jacob, 

And the number of the offspring of Israel 1 

Let me die the death of the righteous, 

And be my end like his. 

Whereupon Balak exclaimed : What hast thou done to me ? I took 
thee to curse my enemies, and, behoid ! thou hast indeed blessed them. 
Balaam answered and said : Must I not take heed to speak that which the 
Lord has put in my mouth 1 He then -went to the head o^ Pisijoh} Avhere 
he could see all Israel, and here figain Balaam announced, that God would 
bless this people, because He saw no unrighteousness in them, and that 
He Avould dwell among them as their King, making known His word to 
them, and endowing them with activity and lion-like power. As Balaam 
ended, Balak exclaimed in dread : Neither curse them at all, nor bless 
them at all. But Balaam replied again: All that the Lord speaks that 
must I do. 

The king resolved to make another trial. He brought the seer up to 
the top of Peor. When Balaam looked down and beheld the spreading 
tents of the Israelites, the Spirit of God came upon him, and he took up 
his parable and said : 

How beautiful are thv tents, Jacob ! 

Thy dwellings, O Israel ! 

Like valleys are they spread out, 

like gardens by the stream, 
Like aloes,- which God has planted, 

like cedars by the waters. 
Water will flow out of his buckets, 
And his seed is by many waters,^ 
And loftier than Agag^ be his king 
And his kingdom will be exalted ! 
God brought him forth out of Egypt; 
He has the swiftness of the buffalo : 
He consumes the nations, his enemies, 
And crushes their bones, and pierces them 

through with his arrows. 
He couches, he lies down as a lion- and as a lioness ; 
Who shall stir him up ? 
Blessed is he that blesses thee, 
And cursed is he that curses thee ! 

And lastly Balaam predicted the rise of a star out of Jacob, and the 
appearance of a ruler in Israel, who shall smite the corners of Moab, and 
break to pieces all its foes. And the king could no longer contain his 
anger, and he smote his hands together and said to Balaam : I called thee 
to curse my enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these 
three times. Therefore now flee thou to thy place ; I thought to honor 
thee exceedingly, but, lo, God has kept thee back from honor. And he 
sent him away without any of the silver and gold Avhich Balaam wanted 
so much. 

Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any di- 
vination against Israel. — 4 Mos. 23, 23. 

' Pisgah^ a high mountain iu Moab, commanding an extensive view of Canaan. 
2 The aloe trees were valued for their fragrant smell; the cedars on account of 
their lofty growth, and the durability of their wood. 
' Dwelling in a well-watered land. 
* Title of the Amalekite kings. 



86 NUMBERS. 



55. TWO AND A HALF TRIBES ASK PERMISSION 
TO STAY ON THAT SIDE OF THE RIVER. 

(4 Mos. 32.) 

As a ring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover to 
an attentive ear. — Prov. 25, 12. 

The children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great mul- 
titude of cattle ; and when they saw the land of Gilead i that it was pe- 
culiarly adapted to flocks, they came and spoke to Moses, Eleazar, and the 
princes of the congregation, saying : The country which the Lord smote 
before the congregation of Israel, is a land for cattle, and thy servants 
have cattle : if we have found favor in thine eyes, let this land be given to 
thy servants for a possession, and make us not pass over the Jordan. 

And Moses said to them : Shall your brethren go to war, and shall you 
sit here? And wherefore discourage you the heart of the children of 
Israel from going over into the land which the Lord has given them 1 
But they came near to him, and said : We will build sheepfolds here for our 
cattle, and towns for our families. But we Avill also equip ourselves speedily 
before the children of Israel, and will not return to these towns built and 
fortified by us against the inhabitants of the land, till the rest of the tribes 
have all received their inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on 
yonder side Jordan, or forward ; because our inheritance is fallen to us on 
this side Jordan eastward. 

And Moses said to them : If you will do this thing, and Avill go with the 
army over the Jordan and assist your brethren in the conquest of the 
land, then you will be guiltless before the Lord and Israel, and this land 
shall be your possession before the Lord. And Moses gave to them, even 
to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and to half the 
tribe of Manasseh, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the 
kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, with the cities thereof in the 
coasts, even the cities of the country round about. 

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes ; but he that hearkens to 
counsel is wise. — Prov. 12, 15. 

1 Gilead was the land to the south and north of the Jabbok, the modern pro- 
vinces of Belka, and Jebei Aylun. The BedouLas say : You can find no country 
like Belka. 



DEUTERON^OMT, 

WHICH MEANS: 

A REPEATING OF THE LAW. 



56. EXPOSITION OF THE TRUE ESSENCE OF THE 
LAW. ADMONITION TO FEAR AND LOVE GOD. 

(5 Mos. 4. 6. 7. 10.) 

And it came to pass in the fortieth year, having snbdued 
the kings Sihon and Og, Moses began to declare to the chil- 
dren of Israel the law which the Lord commanded them, and 
to exhort them to obedience, saying: 

Hearken, Israel, to the statutes and to the judgments which I teach 
you, for to do them, that you may live, and go in and possess the land 
which the Lord God of your fathei's gives you. You shall not add to the 
word which I command you, neither shall you diminish aught from it, 
that you may keep the commandments of the Loi'd your God which I 
command you. 

The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. The Lord 
made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all 
of us here alive this day. The Lord talked with you face to face in the 
mount, out of the midst of the-fire, and gave you the ten words (of the 
covenant) which were written upon two tablets of stone and given to me. 

Know, therefore, this day, and consider it in thy heart, that the Lord is 
God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath : there is none else. 
Thou shalt keep, therefore, His statutes and His commandments which I 
command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy chil- 
dren after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, 
which the Lord thy God giveth thee. 

Hear, Israel : The Lord our God is one God ! 
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy 
heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 
And these words which I command thee this day, 
shall be in thy heart : And thou shalt teach them 
diHgently to thy children, and shalt talk of them 
when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou 
walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and 
when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them 
for a sign upon thy hand, and they shall be as front- 
lets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them 
upon the door-posts of thy house, and on thy gates. 



88 DEUTERONOMY. 

The Lord thy God brings thee into a goodly land,i a land of brooks of 
water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and mountains, a 
land of wheat and barley and vines and fig-trees and pomegranates, a land 
of oil-olive, and honey, a land wherein thou shalt eat without scarceness; 
thou shalt not lack anything in it ; a land whose stones are iron, and out 
of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. The land whither thou goest is 
not as the land of Egypt from whence thou ' camest out, where thou didst 
sow thy seed and water it with thy foot,-^ as a garden of herbs ; but it is a 
land of hills and valleys, and drinks water of the rain of heaven. And 
it shall be, when the Lord thy God shall have brought thee into this land 
to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildedst not, and houses 
full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which 
thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive-trees, which thou plantedst not ; 
when thou shalt have eaten to fullness ; then bcAvare lest thou forget the 
Lord, who brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of 
bondage. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve Him, and shall 
swear by His name. You shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the 
people who are round about you : Neither shalt thou make marriages 
with these peoples ; thy daughter thou shalt not give to his son, nor his 
daughter shalt thou take to thy son. For they will turn away thy son 
from following Me, that he may serve other gods. 

And now, Israel, what does the Lord thy God require of 
thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk -in all His ways, 
and to love Him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy 
heart and with all thy soul. 



57. CONTINUATION.— THE BLESSING AND CURSE 

IS SET BEFORE THEM. UNITY OF WORSHIP 

THE RIGHT MODE OF WORSHIPING GOD. 

(5 Mos. 11. 12. 27 ) 

Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse : A blessing, 
if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God which I command 
you this day ; and a curse, if you will not obey the commandments of the 
Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this 
day, to go after other gods whom you have not known. And it shall 
come to pass when the Lord thy God has brought thee into the land 
whither thou goest to possess it, that thou shalt put the blessing upon 
Mount Gerizim, and the curse upon Mount Ebal.^ 

And the Levites shall speak, and say to all the men of Israel with a 
loud voice : Cursed be the man that makes any graven or molten image, 
an abomination to the Lord, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and 
puts it in a secret place : and all the people shall answer and say : 
Amen.* Cursed be he that lightly esteems his father or his mother : and 

1 The natural richness of Palestine, the variety and excellence of its produc- 
tions, are attested by all ancient writers. 

2 In Ejrypt larjje pnmpins; wheels are still in use. which are worked hy the feet, 
and over which a long endless rope i)asses with pails attached, for drawing up the 
water. 

3 The two mountains, Gerizim and Ebal were opposite to one another, and 
stood, each about 2,500 feet hiixh, in the very centre of the land. Between the two 
is Shechem. the present Ndblus. Gerizim was as barren as Ebal, and was se- 
lected for the ble«Pinp because it was situated on the south, towards the region 
of light, and so of life and blessing. 

* Amen, " truer The "Amen " attested the conviction of the utterers that the 
Bcntences to which they responded were true, just, and certain. 



DEUTERONOMY. 89 

all tlie people shall say : Amen. Cursed be he that removes his neighbor's 
land-mark :^ and all the people shall say : Amen. Cursed be he that makes 
the blind to wander out of the way : and all the people shall say : Amen. 
Cursed be he that perverts the judgment of the stranger, fatherless, and 
widow : and all the people shall say: Amen. Cursed be he that smites his 
neiglibor secretly : and all the people shall say : Amen. Cursed be he that 
takes reward to slay an innocent person : and all the people shall say : 
Amen. Cursed be he that confirms not all the words of this law to do 
them : and all the people shall say : Amen. 

And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently to the voice 
of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all His commandments which I 
command thee this day : that the Lord thy God will set thee on high 
above all nations of the earth : And all these blessings shall come on thee, 
and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God. 
Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field. 
Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and 
the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. 
Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store. Blessed shalt thou be when 
thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out. The 
Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten be- 
fore thy face : they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before 
thee seven ways. The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee in 
thy store-houses, and in all that thou settest thy hand to ; and He shall 
bless thee in the land which the Lord thy God gives thee. The Lord 
shall establish thee a holy people to Himself, as He has sworn to thee, if 
thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk in 
His ways. And all the people of the earth shall see that thou art called 
by the name of the Lord ; and they shall be afraid of thee. 

Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt-offerings in every 
place that thou sees't : But in the place which the Lord shall choose in 
one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou 
shalt do all that I command thee. Notwithstanding, thou mayest kill and 
eat flesh in all thy gates, whatsoever thy soul lusts after, according to the 
blessing of the Lord thy God Avhich He has given thee. 

You are the children of the Lord your God : you shall not cut your- 
selves, nor make any baldness betAveen your eyes for the dead.^ Tor thou 
art a holy people to the Lord thy God, and the Lord has chosen thee to 
be a peculiar people to Himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth. 

58. CONTINUATION.— LO YE AND JUSTICE 

TOWARDS FELLOW-MEN. CITIES OF 

EEFUGE. 

At the end of every seven years ^ thou shalt make a release. Every 
creditor who lends aught to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not 
exact it of his neighbor; because proclamation has been made of the 
Lord's release.* Of a foreigner^ you may exact it. If there be among 

1 The land-mark was a frreat stone and marked the eeparation of lands from each 
other. If any one was inclined to be dishonest, he could easily remove the stoue, 
and so by degrees get away a good deal of his neighbor's inheritance. 

2 It was an ancient superstitious custom to cut off the hair at the death of friends, 
and throw it into the sepulchre on the corpse. 

3 Of the seven years' cycle formed by the Sabbatical year. 

* As the land was during this year to keep Sabbath, so the debt was to stand 
over. If no harvest was gathered in, the land-owner could have no income from 
which to pay his debts. According to most Jewish authorities, however, the re- 
lease was final and lost in perpetuity to the owner. 

^^*^PJ a stranger of another nation. Foreigners could get their ordinary in- 
come in the seventh year as well as in any other. 



90 DEUTERONOMY. 

you a poor man, thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thy hand from 
thy poor brother. But thou shalt open thy hand Avide to him, and shalt 
surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wants Beware 
that there be not a wicked thought in thy heart, saying : The seventh 
year, the year of release, is at hand, when 1 shall not be able to demand 
what I have lent, and that thou cherishest ill-will towards him, and givest 
him not, and he appeals to God against thee, and it becomes sin to thee. 
Thou shalt surely give him, and thy heart shall not be grieved when thou 
givest to him ; because for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee in 
all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thy hand to. 

Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy 
God in the place which He shall choose ; in the feast of unleavened bread, 
and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles : and they shall 
not appear before the Lord empty. But every man with sacrificial gifts, 
according to the blessing which he has received from God. 

When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God gives thee, 
thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There 
shall not be found among you any one that makes his son or his daughter 
to pass through the fire,i or that uses divination, or an observer of times, 
or a snake charmer, or a sorcerer, or a charmer, or a consnlter with fa- 
miliar spirits, or a wizard, or one who seeks oracles from the dead. For 
all that do these things are an abomination to the Lord : and because of 
these abominations the Lord thy God drives the Canaanites out from be- 
fore thee. Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God. 

When the Lord thy God has cut off the nations, whose land the Lord 
thy God gives thee, and thou succeedest them, and dwellest in their cities, 
and in their houses ; Thou shalt separate three cities for thee in the midst 
of thy land, and prepare thither a way 2 that every slayer who kills his 
neighbor ignorantly, may flee thither. Lest the avenger of blood pursue 
him. And if the Lord thy God enlarge thy coast, then shalt thou add 
three cities more for thee, beside these three : That innocent blood be not 
shed in thy land, and so blood be upon thee. 

Thou shalt not remove thy neighbor's land-mark,^ which they of old 
time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land 
that the Lord thy God gives thee to possess it. 

- One witness shall not rise up against a man with reference to any crime 
or sin, but everything is to be established upon the testimony of two or 
three witnesses. 

Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite, for he is thy brother : thou shalt not 
abhor an Egyptian, because thou wast a stranger in his land.* 

Thou shalt not deliver to his master the servant who is escaped from 
his master to thee. He shall dwell with thee wherever he msiy choose ; 
thou shalt not oppress him. 

The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the 
children be put to death for the fathers : every man shall be punished for 
his own sin. 

Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the father- 
less, nor take a widow's raiment in pledge : But thou shalt remember that 

' To Moloch. Moloch was an old Canaanitish idol. It wae represented by a 
brazen statue, which was hollow and capable of being heated, and formed with a 
buirs head, and arms stretched out to receive the children to be sacrificed. 

2 The roads that led to the cities of refuge were to be repaired annually. No 
hillock was left, no river over which there was not a bridge. At cross-roads there 
were posts bearing the words Refuge, Refuge, to guide the fugitive in his flight. 

3 Property by which life is supported participates in the sacredness of life itself. 
The Romans regarded land-marks so sacred, that whoever removed them was to 
be put to death. 

* The Edmonite descended from Esan, a twin brother of Jacob. The Egyptians 
had shown hospitality to Joseph and his brethren. 



DEUTERONOMY. 91 

thou wast a bond-man in Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee 
thence : therefore I command thee to do this thing. 

Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treads out the corn. 

Speaking of the Divine injunctions in general Moses characterized them 
with the following words : 

For this commandment which I command thee this day, is not too won- 
derful (unintelligible) for thee, nor is it too far off. It is neither in 
heaven, that thou shouldest say: Who shall go up for us to heaven, 
and bring it to us, that we may hear it, and do it 1 Keither is it 
beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say : Who shall go over the sea for us, 
and bring it to us, that Ave may hear it, and do it ? But the word is very 
nigh to thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, to do it. I call heaven and 
earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and 
death, blessing and cursing : therefore choose life, that both thou and thy 
seed may live : That thou mayest love^ the Lord thy God, and that thou 
mayest obey His voice, and that thou mayest cleave to Him (for He is thy 
life and the length of thy days), that thou mayest dwell in the land which 
the Lord swore to thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give 
them. 



59. DEATH OF MOSES. JOSHUA SUCCEEDS HIM. 

(5 Mos. 31-34.) 

Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his ! — 
4 Mos. 23, 10, 

And Moses rose up and spoke the following words to all 
Israel: I am a hundred and twenty years old this day; I can 
no more go out and come in; also the Lord has said to me: 
Thou shalt not go over this^ Jordan. The Lord thy God, He 
will go over before thee, and He will destroy these nations 
from before thee, and thou shalt possess them: and Joshua 
shall go over before thee, as the Lord has said. 

And Moses called to Joshua, and said to him in the sight 
of all Israel: Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must 
go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to 
their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to in- 
herit it. And the Lord, He it is that does go before thee; 
He will be with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake 
thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. Moses then handed 
over the law which he had written to the Levitical priests 
who carried the ark of the covenant, and to all the elders of 
Israel, with instructions to read it to the people at the end of 
every seven years, during the festal season of the year of 
release. 

At the foreboding of his death, Moses addressed a sublime charge to 
the people, and having added a beautiful song and blessing, in which he 
delineated the future destinies of the twelve tribes, he left the children of 
Israel, to return no more. 

1 Love stands first as the essential and only source of obedience. 



92 DEUTERONOMY. 

And the Lord spoke to Moses that self -same day, saying: 
Get thee up into this mountain Aharim, to mount Neho ,^ 
which is in the land of Moab, that is over against Jericho; 
and behold the land of Canaan which I give to the children 
of Israel for a possession: And die in the mount whither 
thou goest up, as Aaron thy brother died in mount Hor; be- 
cause ye sanctified Me not in the midst of the children of 
Israel at the waters of Meriba. 

So Moses, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of one 
hundred and twenty years. His eyes had not become dim, 
and his freshness had not abated. And he was buried in a 
valley in the land of Moab; but no man knows of his sepul- 
chre to this day. And the children of Israel wept for Moses 
in the plains of Moab thirty days. 

Joshua, the son of Nun, now took Moses' place as the 
leader of the people, filled with the spirit of wisdom, because 
Moses had ordained him to his office by the laying-on of 
hands. And the people obeyed him; but he was not like 
Moses: For there arose no prophet in Israel like Moses, 
whom the Lord knew face to face, in all the signs and the 
wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of 
Egypt, to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land, 
and in all that mighty hand, and in all the great terror which 
Moses showed in the sight of all Israel. 

Moses appointed us a law, an inheeitance for the 

CONGREGATION OF JaCOB. (5 MoS. 33, 4.) 

1 The mountains of Abarim are a limestone range, running north and south 
through Moab, along the east side of the Dead Sea and the lower Jordan, opposite 
Jericho. Their highest point was Nebo. 



THE BOOK OF JOSHLtA. 



60. JOSHUA SENDS SPIES INTO JERICHO. 
C. E. 1450. 

(Josh. 1. 2.) 

After the death, of Moses the Lord spoke to Joshua, the 
son of Nun, saying: Moses My servant is dead. Now, there- 
fore, do thou rise up and take the children of Israel over 
Jordan, into that land which I give them. As I was with 
Moses, so I wiU be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake 
thee. Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou 
mayest observe to do according to all the law which Moses, 
My servant, commanded thee : turn not from it to the right 
hand or to the left, that thou mayest act wisely withersoever 
thou goest. Then Joshua sent two men as spies over Jor- 
dan, to look at the land, before the children of Israel should 
go into it. And they crossed over the river to Jeeicho,^ and 
went into the house of a woman, an inn-keeper, named 
Rahab, But soon the news reached the King of Jericho, and 
he at once sent to Rahab, saying: Bring forth the men who 
are entered into thy house ; for they are come to search out 
all the country. Rahab, however, had brought them up to 
the flat roof of the house, and concealed them with the stalks of 
flax,^ which were spread out to dry there. And she said to 
the King's messengers: There came men to me: but I knew 
not whence they were; and about the time of the shutting 
of the gate, when it was dark, the men went out: whither 
they went I did not know. Pursue after them quickly, she 
added, for you shall surely overtake them. After the depar- 
ture of the royal messengers, Rahab went up to the men on 
the roof and said to them: I know that the Lord has given 
you the land, and that your terror has fallen upon us, and 
that all the inhabitants of the land tremble before you. For 
we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red 

1 Jericho, the City of Palms.' The most powerful city near the place where he 
proposed to cross the Jordan. 

2 The flax in Palestine grew to more than three feet in height, with a stalk as 
thick as a cane. 



94 JOSHUA. 

sea for you when you came out of Eg5rpt, and wliat you did 
to the two kings of the Amorites on the other side Jordan, 
Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon 
as we had heard these things, our hearts melted, nor did 
there remain any courage in any man on account of you: 
for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above, and on 
the earth beneath. Now, therefore, I pray you, swear to me 
by the Lord, since I have shown you kindness, that you will 
also show kindness to my father's house, and give me a true 
token ; and that you will save alive my father and mother 
and brothers and sisters, and all that they have, and deliver 
our lives from death. And the men answered her: May we 
perish instead of you, if you utter not this our business. 
When the Lord has given us the land, we will deal kindly 
and truly with thee. Then she let them down by a cord 
through the window, over the wall of the city, for her house 
stood on the city wall. And she said: Get you to the 
mountain, lest the pursuers meet you. Then the men said: 
Bind this line of scarlet thread in the window, which thou 
didst let us down by, and bring thy whole family home to 
thee. And whosoever shall dare to venture into the street, 
his blood shall be upon his own head. She was, also, faith- 
fully to keep everything secret which had happened, or to 
lose their protection. And she said: According to your 
words, so be it. And the men departed, and hid themselves 
in the mountains three days, until the pursuers were returned, 
and they got safe back and told Joshua all things that befell 
them, and said: Truly the Lord has delivered into our hands 
all the land; for all the inhabitants of the land tremble 
before us. 

He remembers for ever His covenant, the -word which He has estab- 
lished to a thousand generations, saying : Unto thee do I give the land 
of Canaan, as the line of vour inheritance. — Ps. 105, 8, 11. 



61. JOSHUA PASSES OVER THE JORDAN. 

(Josh. 3. 4.) 

The report of the spies decided Joshna to delay no longer, but to profit 
at once by the existing panic ; and he issued his orders for the immediate 
crossing of the river. The enormous host descended fiom Shittim ^ to the 
bank of the Jordan. Here they lodged three days before they passed over. 
And Joshua said to the children of Israel : Come hitber and hear the 
words of the Lord your God. Hereby you shall know that the living God 
is among you, and that He will without fail drive out from before you the 
nations of Canaan. Behold, the ark of the covenant passes over before 

1 In the low level of Moab, by the Jordan. Acacia groves {T]DW) etill remain 
in the vicinity. 



JOSHUA. 95 

you into Jordan, and as soon as the feet of the priests who bear the ark 
shall rest in the bed of the river, the Avaters of Jordan above the place of 
crossing shall be cut off and stand still, so that no more shall flow by, and 
the waters below shall run aAvay towards the Dead Sea. 

So the priests moved forward and stood in Jordan ; and the waters dried 
up as Joshua had foretold, although this happened at the time of harvest, 
Avhen the river is full up to all its banks, flowing in a full, turbid stream. 
Now while the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood 
firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, the Israelites, including the 
warriors of the two and a half tribes, being about forty thousand prepared 
for war, passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean 
over Jordan. In commemoration of that event Joshua caused twelve 
stones, taken from the place Avhere the priests had stood, to be erected in 
Gi/gal, in the south-east borders of Jericho. At the same place Joshua 
circumcised the males of the children of Israel, which had not been done 
in the desert. And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept 
the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even, in the plains of 
Jericho. On the morrow after the passover they ate of the produce of the 
land, unleavened cakes, and parched corn. And the manna on which 
they had fed in the desert, ceased after they had eaten of the fruit of the 
land. 

The Lord is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working. — Isa. 28, 29. 



62. THE TAKING OF JERICHO. 

(Josh. 6.) 

Jericlio had, at the approach of the Israelites, closed its 
gates, so that no one went out and no one came in. In com- 
pliance with the Divine command, Joshua marshaled his 
host for orderly march around the city. First marched the 
warriors ; then, blowing the cornets of jubilee, came the seven 
priests, preceding the ark, borne on the Levites' shoulders, 
and guarded by the rearward, an armed detachment which 
closed the long line.. The host marched in silence. The cir- 
cuit completed, the army returned to their tents. This was 
done daily, for six days, as commanded, and on the seventh day 
the procession moved at daybreak. The first circuit was suc- 
ceeded by a second; the second by a third, a fourth, a fifth, a 
sixth. At the completion of the seventh circuit, the people who 
have marched before in silence around the city, raise a battle 
shout. The trumpets clang. The walls of Jericho fall flat, and 
the barrier removed, the people go up into the city, every man 
straight before him, and the city is taken. As the first-fruits 
of the guilty land, the whole city, with all that was in it, was 
"devoted" as a sacrifice to the Lord. The whole population 
was put to the sword, with every living thing the city con- 
tained, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and 
sheep, and ass. Only the faithful inn-keeper Rahab, with her 
household, were spared, according to the promise of the spies. 
The indestructible booty, the silver and gold, and vessels of 



96 JOSHUA. 

brass and iron, were consecrated to the service of the sanctu- 
ary. Then the city was burned with fire; and Joshua pro- 
claimed publicly: Cursed be the man before the Lord that 
raises up and rebuilds the fortifications of this city Jericho. 
He shall lay the foundation thereof with his first-born, and 
with his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it. 

For by Thee do I scatter troops, and by my God do I leap walls. — 
Ps. 18, 29. 



63. ACHAN'S SIN. CAPTURE OF AI. 

(Josh. 7. 8.) 

Prom Jericho Joshua sent men to Ai, which is on the east side of Beth- 
el, about twelve miles from Jericho, to search and view it. They did 
so ; and when they returned, they said to Joshua : Make not all the 
people to labor thither, for they ai-e but few. So there went up about 
three thousand men ; but they fled before the men of Ai, who smote of 
them about thirty-six men ; wherefore the hearts of the people melted, 
find became as water. Overw^helmed with shame and apprehension, 
Joshua rent his clothes, fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of tlie 
Lord until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their 
heads. And Joshua said: Alas ! O Lord God, wherefore hast Thou at all 
brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hands of the Amor- 
ites, to destroy us "? Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turn their 
backs before their enemies ? But the Lord answered : Get thee up : 
wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face 1 Israel has sinned ;i they have 
transgressed my covenant which I commanded them ; for they have taken 
of the devoted thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and appro- 
priated it to their own use.'^ Therefore the children of Israel could not 
stand before their enemies, but turnt^d their backs, because they were 
accursed ; neither will I be with you any more, except you destroy the 
accursed from among you. Joshua rose up early in the morning, and 
gathered all Israel together by their tribes to determhie by resorting to 
the lot, the guilty party. Gradually the circle narrowed. First the 
tribe ; then the family ; then the household ; then the man was taken ; 
Achan, the son of Zabdi, of the tribe of Judah. And Joshua said to him : 
My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make con- 
fession to Him ; and tell me now what thou hast done, hide it not from 
me. Achan answered : Indeed I have sinned against the Lord God of 
Israel, and this is what I have done. When I saw among the spoils a 
goodly Babylonish garment, two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge 
of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them, and 
behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent. So Joshua 
sent messengers, who ran to the tent, and behold, it was hid in his tent. 
Then Joshua said : Why hast thou troubled us ? the Lord shall trouble 
thee this day. Then the whole congregation led Adian into the valley of 
Achor (Trouble), with his sons and his daughters, and his oxen and his 
asses. And all Israel stoned the men and beasts to death,'^ and then burned 
them, together with the tent and the spoil unlawfully taken, with fire.* 

1 In the pereon of one of the people. 

^ The sin was not theft merely, but sacrilege. 

8 Achan had fallen under the ban, and he and his were treated as were communi- 
ties thus devoted. It would appear too, that hie family must have been accom- 
plices in his sin. 

4 The burning? of the body after capital punishment, was prescribed in extreme 
cases as an aggravation of the penalty. 



JOSHUA. 97 

Ai now fell an easy prey to the Israelites, and Joshua burned it, and 
made it a heap for ever. 

Treasures of wickedness do not profit. — Prov. 10, 2. 



64. THE CUNNING OF THE GIBEONITES 

(Josh. 9.) 

"When the inhabitants of Giheon^ heard what Joshua had 
done to Jericho and Ai, they worked wilily, and dressed up 
men Uke embassadors from a far country, who took old sacks 
upon their asses, and leathern wine-bottles, old, rent, and 
bound up again, and old shoes which they had patched, and 
old garments, worn as by long travelling, and all the 
bread of their provision was dry and mouldy. And they 
presented themselves to Joshua, and said: From a very far 
country thy servants have come, on account of the name of 
the Lord thy God; for we have heard the fame of Him, and 
all that He did for Israel ! Wherefore our elders, and the 
inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying : Take victuals 
with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to 
them: We are your servants; therefore, now make ye a league 
with us. This our bread we took hot for our provision out 
of our houses on the day we came forth to go to you; but 
now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy. And these bottles 
of wine which we filled, were new, and behold, they are rent, 
and these our garments and our shoes are become old by 
reason of the very long journey. And the men took of their 
victuals, that sacred token of friendship in the east, and asked 
not counsel at the mouth of the Lord.^ And Joshua made 
peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them 
live ; and the princes of the congregation swore to them. Three 
days later the mortifying truth was discovered. It was found 
that they were their neighbors, dwelHng near at hand. But 
notwithstanding the murmurings of the people against the 
princes on account of their culpable negligence, the Lord's 
oath, though procured by fraud, was not broken. The 
princes said: We have sworn by the Lord God of Israel; 
now, therefore, we may not touch them. We will let them 
live ; but let them be hewers of wood and drawers of water, 
to all the congregation. 

That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform. — 
5 Mos. 23, 23. 



1 Gibeon, lying to the west of Jericho, twenty-four miles off, was the head of four 
towns occupied by the Hivites. 
2 1, e., by the Urim and Thummim. 
■5 



98 JOSHUA. 

65. JOSHUA WARS AGAINST THE CANAANITES. 

(Josh. 10, 19.) 

When Adoni-Zedek, king of Jerusalem} had heard how Joshua had taken 
Ai, and had utterly destroyed it ; and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had 
made peace with Israel and were among them ; he sent to four other 
kings of the land, to form a league with him, in order to punish the defec- 
tion of Gibeon, and to arrest the further progress of the invaders. The 
five allies gathered themselves together, and encamped before Gibeon, and 
made war against it. Then the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua to the 
camp at Gilgal, saying : Slack not thy hand from thy servants ; come up 
to us quickly, and save us, and help us : for all the kings of the .Amorites 
are gathered together against us. So Joshua made a forced march, and 
accomplished in a single night the distance from Gilgal to Gibeon (about 
fifteen miles in a direct line). He burst upon the Amorite host in the 
early morning, and discomfited them, and chased the five kings till the 
evening. There a fierce tempest, accompanied with hail-stones of pro- 
digious size, burst on the fugitives, and completed their discomfiture, and 
stricken down by the hand of God, they were more who died with hail- 
stones,- than they whom the children of Israel slew with the SAvord. 

This great battle of Gibeon, long famed in Hebrew history, began at day- 
break and lasted on throughout the day. On that day the Lord delivered 
up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and Joshua said in the 
hearing of Israel : 

Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, 
And thou, moon, in the valley of Ajalon.^ 
And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged 
themselves upon their enemies. Thus it is written in the Book oi' Jashnr.'-^ 

The five defeated kings had escaped and lay concealed in a cave. Josh- 
ua gave orders that the mouth of the cave should be blocked by huge 
stones, and setting a guard over it, pressed the rear of the fugitives, slay- 
ing them with a great slaughter till they were nearly consumed, and the 
few who remained had entered into fenced cities. 

The five kings were now brought forth from the cave, and Joshua desired 
his captains to put their feet upon the necks of the kings, as a token of 
their complete overthrow. Then he slew them and hanged them on five 
trees till the evening. 

This great battle was followed by the conquest of seven other kings, so 
that Joshua subdued in this one campaign the southern half of Palestine. 
After this Joshua turned to the north and gained the victory oxer Jabin, 
the king of Hazor, and other kings, allied with Jabin, at tlie waters of 
Merom^ 

Joshua then traversed the land with sword and spear, and smote all 
the country of the h'Us, and of the south, and of the vale, and of the 
slopes, and all their kin<,s. There was not a city that made peace 
with the children of Israel, save the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon : 
all others they took in battle. 

1 Or Jebus, inhabited by the Jebusitcs, who had a footing in it till the time of 
David. The name of Jerusalem (Foundation of Peace) came into use alter the 
adoption of the city by David, as the metropolis of the nation. 

^ Ajalon, hinds or gazelles, at the present day, a village, Jalu. 

' The Book of Bight. Probably a collection of national songs, celebrating the 
heroes of Israel. Thus it is written means : the poet says this ; tlie same poet who 
has previously put in Joshua's mouth this grand poetical exclamation. 

* By Joscphus it is called Samechonitis : it is now Lake Huleh. 



JOSHUA. 99 

Thirty -one kings were thus overcome by Joshua, and these struggles 
lasted to the very verge of his old age : and yet many places and districts 
remained to be conquered. Among them, all the territory of the Philis- 
tines, and of Geskur, of the Avites, of the Giblites, and of all the Lebanon. 

The Lord is my light and my salvation : He is my counsellor in all my 
difficulties.— Ps. 27, 1. 



66. DIVISION OF THE COUNTRY. 

, (Josh. 16, 19.) 

Now the land was to be divided between nine tribes and a half; the 
other two and a half (Reuben, Gad and half Manasseh) having already 
received their allotment, according to their own wish, from Moses on the 
east of Jordan; and the Levites receiving no inheritance among their 
brethren, for the sacrifices of the Lord were their inheritance ; and there 
were besides 48 cities — four out of each tribe — assigned to them. 

The distribution was made by lot,^ by wliich tbe part of 
tbe land to be assigned to each tribe was determined, whether 
it should be in the north or in the south, in the east or in the 
west; whereas the magnitude of the portion was fixed 
according to the population of the tribe. 

Previously Caleb, the patriarch of the tribe of Judah, 
received in the district assigned to his tribe, according to 
the promise of Moses, the fertile region of the mountain of 
Hebron. 

Then Judah received its inheritance. Its territory em- 
braced the most southern part of the land, so that it touched 
Edom on the east and in the south had the wilderness of Zin 
as its border. 

The united inheritance of Ephraim and Manasseh includes 
a pleasant, and, for the most part, fruitful country lying in 
the middle of western Palestine. It extends from the Jor- 
dan, and the eastern decHvities of mount Ephraim, across 
to the sea-shore which borders the beautiful plain of Sharon. 
Of this entire district Ephraim received the southern por- 
tion, Manasseh the northern, besides the land which was 
assigned to the half-tribe of Manasseh beyond the Jordan. 

Now the distribution seems to have been interrupted; for 
we find (Chap. 18) the congregation assembled at Shiloh, five 
hours south of Shechem, where, in the mean time, the Tab- 
ernacle had been brought, and where the remaining seven 
tribes received their inheritance. 

But before proceeding to divide the land, 21 men were 
sent out to survey and describe it. This having been done, 
Joshua cast lots and distributed the still remaining territory. 

1 Most probably the lot was taken as the Rabbins have conjectured. There 
were two urns. In one had heen placed little tablets (tickets) with the names of 
the tribes, and in the other similar tablets with the names of the Districts, and on© 
of each was drawn at the same time. 



100 JOSHUA. 

The Territory of Benjamin, in general mountainous, lay 
between Judah on the south, and the sons of Joseph on the 
north. Simeon's inheritance was the south-western part of 
the maritime plain, with the land bordering on the desert, as 
far eastward as Beer-sheba. Their western coast lay along 
the Mediterranean to the north of Ascalon. The bounds of 
ZEBULUNwere: the sea of Gennesaret as the eastern border, 
Mt. Carmel and the sea as the western. 

IssACHAR touched in the north on Zebulun and Naphtali, 
in the west on Asher and Manasseh, in the south likewise on 
Manasseh in part and in part also on Ephraim, in the east on 
the Jordan. Its most important and most beautiful section 
of country was the fertile plain of Jezreel. Asher received 
its territory on the slope of the Galilean mountains toward 
the Mediterranean. Naphtali's territory was bounded east 
by the sea of Gennesaret and the Jordan, west by Asher, 
south by Zebulun and Issachar. The territory of Dan was 
west of Benjamin, north of Judah, south of Ephraim. 
Their lot fell to them in pleasant places. — Ps. 1 6, 6. 

According to his desire, Joshua received Timnath-serah as 
a possession on Mount Ephraim. The tribe of Levi did not 
receive any land possession, because the sacrifices (or the Priest- 
hood) of the Lord were their inheritance. To the tribes of 
Reuben, Gad and Half-Manasseh Moses had already as- 
signed their inheritance beyond Jordan. 

Thus the Lord gave Israel the land that he had promised 
their fathers. He gave them rest; there had not failed one 
word of all His good promise, which He promised by the 
hand of Moses His servant. 



67. JOSHUA'S LAST EXHORTATION TO THE 
CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. 

(Josh. 23, 24.) 

A long time after the Lord had given rest to Israel from 
all their enemies, Joshua called for all Israel, and for their 
elders, and their heads, and said to them: I am old and 
stricken in age, and you have seen all that the Lord your 
God has done to all these nations because of you ; for it is 
the Lord your God who has fought for you. Be ye, there- 
fore, very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in 
the book of the law of Moses, that you turn not aside there- 
from to the right hand or to the left; but cleave to the Lord 
your God, as you have done to this day. Behold, this day I 
am going the way of all the earth: and you know in all 



JOSHUA. 101 

your hearts, and in all your souls, that not one thing has 
failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke 
concerning you; all are come to pass to you, and not one 
thing has failed thereof. Therefore it shall come to pass, 
that as all good things are come upon you, which the Lord 
your God promised you; so shall the Lord bring upon you 
all evil things, and you shall perish quickly from off the 
good land which He has given to you, in case you turn 
away from the Lord. Now therefore fear the Lord, and 
serve Him in sincerity and in truth; and if it seem evil to 
you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom you will 
serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were 
on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites 
in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we 
will serve the Lord. 

The people, with ready enthusiasm, declared and said: God 
forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods; 
for the Lord our God, He it is who brought us up, .and our 
fathers, out of the land of Egjrpt, from the house of bond- 
age, and who did those great signs before our eyes, and pre- 
served us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the 
people through whom we passed. 

Hearing their united asseveration Joshua exclaimed: You 
are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen you 
the Lord to serye Him. And they said: "We are witnesses. 
The Lord our God will we serve, and His voice will we obey. 
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and 
set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem. Then 
Joshua let the people depart, every man to his inheritance. 
There was no more for Joshua to do. To the end of his 
heroic and spotless career he had followed the Lord fully, 
and he could now contentedly go the way of all the earth. 
Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of God, died, being 110 
years old. And they buried him in the border of his inher- 
itance in Timnath-serali, which is in Mount Ephraim. And 
the bones of Joseph which the children of Israel brought up 
out of Egypt they buried at Shechem, in the parcel of the 
field which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor, the father 
of Shechem. Not long afterwards died Eleazar, the son of 
Aaron; and they buried him on the hill of Phinehas, his 
son, which was given him in Mount Ephraim. 

But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. — Josh. 24, 15. 



THE 

BOOK OF JUDGES. 

THE EARLIER JUDGES TO DEBORAH AND BARAK. 

C. E. 1426—1256. 



68. OTHNIEL, EHUD, SHAMGAK. 

(Judg. 1-3.) -^ 

Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the 
days of the elders that lived many years after Joshua, who 
had seen all the great works of the Lord, that He did for 
Israel. But all that generation were gathered to their fath- 
ers, and there arose another generation after them, which 
knew not the Lord, nor the works which He had done for 
Israel. And they did evil in the sight of the Lord; they 
forsook Him, became idolaters, and served Baalim^ and Ash- 
tarothJ Then the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel; 
He delivered them into the hands of oppressors, and sold 
them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that 
they could not any longer stand before their enemies, and 
were greatly distressed. . Nevertheless when they cried to 
the Lord and repented of their evil doings. He raised up 
Judges, that is, men endued with wisdom, courage, and 
strength, who delivered them out of the hand of those that 
spoiled them. Thus it came to pass that the Lord sold Israel 
first into the hand of Chushan-rishathawi, king of Mesopo- 
tamia, and they served him eight years. In their despair 
they cried to the Lord, and He raised up Othniel, Caleb's 
nephew, to be their deliverer, and the first judge. Under 
his government the land had rest for forty years. 

When Othniel died the children of Israel did evil again in 
the sight of the Lord ; and He strengthened Eglon, the king 
of Moab, against Israel; and they served him and paid him 
tribute eighteen years. But there was a man of the tribe of 

1 The numerous images of Baal (supreme god of the Canannitish and Phoenician 
nations), which they set up and worshipped.— Comp. page Si, Note 4. 
a Statues of the principal female deity of the Phoenicians, 



JUDGES. 103 

Benjamin, whose name was Ehud, the son of Gera. He was 
left-handed; and by him the children of Israel sent a present 
to Eglon, the king of Moab. Ehud made him a dagger with 
two edges, as long as his arm, and he fastened it under his 
garments, upon his right thigh. "When he had offered the 
present he dismissed the people that bore it; but turning 
himself back, he said to the king: I have a secret errand to 
thee, King! The king convinced of Ehud's devotion to 
him and thinking he had something very important to say, 
which he wished to hide from Israel, commanded: Silence! 
And all went out from him. Eglon was sitting in a cool 
upper story, which was his private apartment. Then Ehud 
went near to him and said in a low voice: 1 have a message 
from God to thee. The king arose out of his seat. At that 
moment Ehud put forth his left hand, took the dagger from 
his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. The thrust was 
so powerful that the dagger, together with its short handle, 
buried itself in the fat of the man, and came out behind. 
The king fell down without uttering a sound. Ehud then 
locked the doors, and passing quietly by the guards, he got 
away safely. Having escaped thus to his people he blew the 
trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim; the children of Israel 
went down with him from the mountains. Follow me, 
he said, for the Lord has delivered your enemies, the Mo- 
abites, into your hand. They went down after him, and took 
the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to 
pass over. And they slew of Moab at that time about ten 
thousand men, all lusty men of valor; and there escaped not 
a man. So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of 
Israel. And the land had rest four- score years. After him 
was Shamgar, the son of Anath, who slew of the Philistines 
six hundred men with an ox-goad,^ and he also delivered 
Israel. 

Let Israel hope in the Lord : for with the Lord there is mercy, and 
with Him is plenteous redemption, — Ps. 130, 7. 



69. DEBORAH AND BARAK DELIVER ISRAEL 
FROM JABIN. 

(Judg. 4.) 

The children of Israel falling anew into evil, the Lord sold 
them into the hands of Jahin, king of Hazor,^ and caused 

* An ox-goad used to be about three yards long, with an iron pike at one end 
to drive the ox, and a sharp spade at the other end to clean the plough. 

* Hazor was on the shore of the Samachonite Lake. 



1 04 JUDGES. 

them again to cry to Him; for Jabin had 900 chariots of 
iron and mightily oppressed them twenty years. 

At that time Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, 
judged Israel. She sat under a palm-tree and there spoke 
words of advice and judgment. Seeing the oppression of 
the people she sent for Barak, the son of Abinoam, from 
Kedesh-Naphtali,'^ and said to him: Has not the Lord God of 
Israel commanded, saying: Go and draw toward Mount 
Tabor, "^ and take with thee 10,000 men of the children of 
Naphtali and the children of Zebulun ? And I will draw to 
thee Sisera,^ the general of Jabin's army, and his chariots 
and his multitudes, and I will deliver him into thy hand. 
And Barak said to her: If thou wilt go with me, then I 
will go; but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go. 
I will surely go with thee, was Deborah's reply; notwith- 
standing the expedition on which thou goest, shall not be for 
thy honor; for the victory will then be ascribed to a woman 
and not to thee. Nevertheless, Barak insisted on his con- 
dition. He would have the conflict sanctified by her pres- 
ence; and so Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. 
When Sisera was informed that Barak had marched with 
his army to Mount Tabor, he gathered together all his chariots 
and all the people that were with him to the river of Kishon,^ 
Now Deborah said to Barak: Arise! for this is the day when 
the Lord will deliver Sisera into thy hand ; behold, the Lord 
has gone before thee! So Barak went down from Mount 
Tabor, and 10,000 men after him. And the Lord discom- 
fited Sisera and all his chariots, and all his host before 
Barak. Far and wide the vast army of the Canaanites 
fled. In the general panic Sisera himself leapt from his 
chariot and fled on foot for his life. 

He fled to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite.^ She went 
out to meet him with the accustomed salutation : Turn in, my lord, turn 
in ; fear not. And when he had come into the tent, she covered him with 
a mantle. Exhausted by his flight, he said to her : Give me, I pray thee, 
a little water to drink ; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of 
milk, and gave him drink, and covered him. Again he said to her: 
Stand in the door of the tent, and when any one comes and inquires of 
thee and says : Is there any man here ? thou shalt say : No. Now, when 
Jael was certain that he was asleep, she took a nail of the tent, ajid took 
a hammer in her hand ; then advancing softly to the sleeping man, she 
drove the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground. So he 

' A city in the far north, now a villa2:e, under the name Kadesh. It lies on the 
hcirfhts four miles to the northwest of the Lake Iluleh. 

^ Mount Tabor is situated in the midst of the plain of Galilee. 

3 The great Rabbi Akiba claimed to be descended from him. 

* Kishon, now the Nahr Mukatta, flowing through the plain under Mount Car- 
mel, aud into the Bay of Acre. 

» The Kcnitee were descendants of Hobab, Moees' brother- In-law. 



JtJDGES. 105 

died. And behold, as Barak pursued Siscra, Jael came out to meet him, 
and said to him : Come, and 1 will show thee the man whom thou seekest. 
And when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the nail 
was in his temples So God subdued on that day Jabin, the king of Ca- 
naan, before the children of Israel. Then Deborah and Barak the son 
of Abinoam, sang a song of victory on that day. And the land had rest 
forty years. 

Manv daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. — 
Prov. 31, 29. 



THE JUDGES, FROM GIDEON TO JEPHTHAH. 

C. E. 1256—1112. 
70. GIDEON'S EXPLOITS. 

(Judg. 6-8.) 

The cMIdren of Israel again did evil, and the Lord deliv- 
ered them into the hand of Midian^ seven years. The 
power of tte Midianites bore so heavily on the Israehtes, 
that these made for themselves the clefts which are in the 
mountains, the caves, and the strongholds to serve as 
hiding-places for them and as places of concealment and 
security for their property and the necessaries of life. And 
when they had sown their fields, the Midianites came up, and 
the Amalekites, and the children of the East, and destroyed 
the products of the land,^ and left no sustenance for Israel, 
neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. For they came up with their 
cattle and their tents like locusts in multitude into the land 
to destroy it. Thus Israel was greatly impoverished and 
cried to the Lord. 

Now an angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, the son of 
Joash, as he threshed wheat by the wine-press, to hide it 
from the Midianites. The Lord be with thee, thou mighty 
man of valor! said the angel to Gideon. But Gideon replied: 
my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this 
befallen us ? Where are all His miracles of which our 
fathers told us ? Now the Lord has forsaken us, and deliv- 
ered us into the hands of the Midianites. But the Lord 
turned towards him and said: Go in this thy might, thou 
shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites; have I 
not sent thee ? Then Gideon said: Pardon, my Lord, but 
w^herewith shall I save Israel ? behold, my family is the 
poorest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father's 
house. Because I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite 
the Midianites as one man, was the Lord's reply. The same 

^ The Midianites are wandering tribes in the desert of Sinai, answering in a 
manner to modern Bedouins. 



106 JUDGES. 

night the Lord said to him : Take thy father's young bullock, 
and the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down 
the altar of Baal that thy father has, and cut down the 
Astarte' that is by it; and build an altar to the Lord thy 
God upon the top of this rock, and take the second bullock, 
and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the Astarte 
which thou shalt cut down. Then Gideon took ten men of 
his servants, and did as the Lord had said to him : and so it 
was, because he feared the men of the city, that he could not 
do it by day, that he did it by night. When the men of the 
city arose early in the morning, they said one to another: 
W ho has done this thing ? And when they inquired and 
asked, they were told: Gideon the son of Joash has done 
this thing. Then the men of the city said to Joash: Bring 
out thy son, that he may die, because he has cast down the 
altar of Baal, and has cut down the Astarte that was by it. 
And Joash said to all that stood against him: Will you plead 
for Baal ? will you save him ? he that will plead for him, let 
him be put to death, if he be a god, let him plead for him- 
self. Therefore on that day Gideon was called Jerubbaal, 
for Joash said: Let Baal plead against him, because he has 
thrown down his altar. 

Now when the Midianites, and the Amalekites, and the 
children of the East, went over Jordan, and pitched in the 
valley of Jezreel, the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, 
and he blew the trumpet; and his father's family, the Abi- 
Ezrites, were gathered after him. Encouraged by this, he sent 
messengers throughout all Manasseh, his own tribe, and they 
too, flocked to his standard. Then he sent messengers to the . 
three northern tribes of Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, and 
also they hastened to join him. 

And Gideon said to God : If Thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as Thou 
hast said, behold, I will put a fleece of wool in the flooi%"^ and if the dew 
be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth besides, then shall I 
know that Thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as Thoti hast said. And it 
was so ; for he rose up early on the morrow, and thrust the fleece to<rethcr, 
and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowl-full of water. And Gideon 
said to God : Let not Thy anger be hot against me, and I will speak but 
this once : let me prove Thee, I pray Thee, but this once with the fleece ; 
let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there 
be dew. And God did so that night ; for it was dry upon the fleece only, 
and there was dew on all the ground. 

11. CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY 
OF GIDEON. 

(Judg. 7.) 

Thirty-two thousand men had answered to Gideon's sura- 

1 The wooden image of Aetarte, the female deity of the Canaanites. 

2 The threshing floors were under the open air. 



JUDGES. 107 

mons, but the Lord said to him: The people that are'with 
thee are too many, lest Israel boast themselves against Me, 
saying: My own hand has saved me. Therefore proclaim in 
the ears of the people, saying: Whosoever is fearful and 
afraid, let him return. And there returned of the people 
twenty-two thousand, and ten thousand remained. But 
the Lord said to Gideon: The people are yet too many, 
bring them down to the water. Every one that laps, as a 
dog laps, of the water with his tongue, him shalt thou set by 
himself; Ukewise every one that bows down upon his knees 
to drink. And the number of them that lapped, putting 
their hands to their mouths, were three hundred men ; but all 
the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink 
water. And the Lord said: By the three hundred men that 
lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thy 
hand; and he sent all the rest of Israel to their tents, and 
retained those three hundred men. 

In the same night Gideon at the order of the Lord went down with 
Pdra, his servant, to the outskirts of the camp of the enemy, to hear 
what they Avere saying. And behold, there Avas a man that told a dream 
to his fellow, and said . I dreamt a dream, and lo, a cake of barley-bread i 
tumbled into the host of Midian, and came to the tent,^ and smote it that 
it fell, and overturned it that it lay along. And his fellow answered, and 
said : This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon ; for into his hand has 
God delivered Midian, and all the host. 

When Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and its interpretation, 
he prostrated himself, and returned into the host of Israel, and said : 
Arise ! for the Lord has delivered into your hand the host of Midian. 

And he divided the three hundred men into three compa- 
nies, and put trumpets in the hands of all of them, with 
empty pitchers, and fire brands within the pitchers. And he 
said to them: Look on me, and do as I do. 

So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, 
came to the outside of the camp in the t)eginning of the 
middle watch, ^ and they blew the trumpets and broke the 
pitchers that were in their hands. At the same moment the 
three companies blew the trumpets, broke the pitchers, and 
seized with their left hands the firebrands, and with their 
right hands the trumpets to blow, and they cried : The sword 
of the Lord and of Gideon. And they remained standing 
each man in his place round about the camp; and all the 
host of Midian ran, and cried, and fled. And while the 
three hundred blew the trumpets, the Lord set every man's 
sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host; and 

^ Such a one as could hardly he eaten, it was so vile. (Josephus.) 
2 Probably the tent of the king of Midian, or of the Captain of the host. 
8 The old Jewish division of the nijjht was three watches of four hours each; 
the begmning of the watch would be about eleven o'clock at night. 



108 JUDGES, 

the host fled. And the men of Israel were called together 
out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, 
and they pursued after the Midianites. Gideon also sent 
messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying: Come 
down against the Midianites, and take before them the waters ^ 
unto Beth-harah and Jordan. So they did, and they captured 
the two princes of the Midianites, Oreb and Zeeb; and they 
slew them, and brought their heads to Gideon on the other 
side of Jordan. 

There is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or few. — 1 Sam. 
14, 6. 

V2. MIDIAN SUBDUED. 

(Judg. 8.) 

The men of Ephraim said to Gideon : Why hast thou f^erved ns thus, 
that thou calledst us not when thou wentest to fight with the Midianites? 
And they rebuked him sharply. Then he said to them : What have I 
done now in comparison with you? Is not the gleaning of the grapes of 
Ephraim better than the vintage of Abi-ezer'?^ God has delivered into 
your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb ; and Avhat was I able 
to do in comparison with ^ou"? Then their anger was abated toward 
him, when he had said that. 

Then the men of Israel said to Gideon : Rule thou over us, both thou, 
and thy son, and thy son's son also ; for thou hast delivered us from the 
hand of Midian. And Gideon said to them : I will not rule over you, 
neither shall my son rule over you : the Lord shall rule over you. 

And Gideon said to them : I would desire a request of you, that each 
one would give me the ear-rings of his prey.^ And they answered : We 
will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and every man 
cast therein the ear-rings of his prey. And the weight of the golden 
ear-rings that he requested, was a thousand and seven hundred shekels 
of gold ; beside ornaments, and purple raiment that was on the kings 
of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels' necks. 
And Gideon made an ephod* or priestly garment thereof, and put it 
in his city, even in Ophrah ; which thing became a cause of ruiu to 
Gideon, and to his house. 

Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel, so that they 
lifted their heads no more. And the country was in quietness forty years 
in the days of Gideon. 

A soft answer turneth away wrath ; but harsh words stir up anger. — 
Prov. 15, 1. 

73. ABIMELECH'S CONSPIRACY AND MURDER. 
JOTHAM'S PARABLE. 

(Judg. 9.) 

Gidecn having died in a good old age, was buried in the 

1 The Btreams which run from the mountain-district of Ephraim into the Jordan, 
forming great pools and marshes. 

2 Gideon belonged to the family of Abiezcr. 

3 The Midianites and Ishmaelites wore enormous golden ear-rings, and were 
remarkable for their great wealth in gold and other metal ornaments, showing 
their ccmncction with a gold country. 

* lie desired to have an ephod of his own, to be woni bv the high-priest when- 
ever he might summon him to inquire of God by Urim and Thuminim for him. 



JUDGES. ioy 

sepulclire of Joash. his father. After his death the children 
of Israel turned again and went after the false gods of the 
heathen; and as for Gideon, they quite forgot him, and 
showed no kindness to his house, according to all the good- 
ness which he had shown to Israel. Gideon had left seventy 
sons, who were his heirs, for he had many wives; but he had 
also one son, whose name was Abimelech, by a concubine, 
whose son was not allowed to inherit or share any part of 
the property. After his father's death, Abimelech retired to 
Shechem, to his mother's relations, for she was of that place, 
and talked with them, saying: Speak, I pray you, in the ears 
of all the men of Shechem: What is better for you, that 
seventy persons, all the sons of Jerubbaal, reign over you, 
or that one man reign over you ? And remember that I am 
your bone and your flesh. And his mother's brethren spoke 
concerning him in the ears of all the men of Shechem, and 
their hearts inchned to follow Abimelech; for they said: He 
is our brother. And they gave him seventy pieces of silver, 
wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons who fol- 
lowed him. And he went to his father's house at Ophrah, 
and slew his brothers, seventy persons, upon one stone. But 
there was yet left Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal; 
for he had hidden himseK. Then all the men of Shechem 
gathered together and made Abimelech King. 

And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood on the 
top of Mount Gerizim, wJiich overlooked Shechem, and raised 
up his voice, and cried, and said to them: Hearken to nae, ye 
men of Shechem, that God may hearken to you. Once ^ the 
trees went forth to anoint a king over them, and they said to 
the olive tree: Reign thou over us; but the (3live-tree said: 
Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honor God 
and man, and go to wave over the trees ? Then the. trees 
said to the fig-tree : Come thou, and reign over us ; but the 
fig-tree said: Should I forsake my sweetness, and my choice 
fruit, and go to wave over the trees ? Then said the trees to 
the vine: Come thou, and reign over us; and the vine said: 
Should I leave my wine, which cheers God and men, and go 
to wave over the trees ? Then all the trees said to the bram- 
ble: Come thou, and reign over us; and the bramble said: 
If in truth you anoint me king over you, then come and put 
your trust in my shadow; and if not, let fire come out of the 
bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. Now, there- 
fore, if you have done truly and sincerely, in that you have 
made Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerub- 
baal and his house, and have done to him as his hands deserve 

This is the oldest fable extant. 



Hi'. I 



110 JUDGES. 

— for my father fought for you and exposed his life to the 
danger, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian : and you 
have risen up against my father's house this day, and have 
slain his sons, seventy men, upon one stone, and have made 
Abimelech, the son of his maid-servant, king, because he is 
your brother. If you then have dealt truly and sincerely 
with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice you 
in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you; but if not, let 
fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of She- 
chem, and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and 
devour Abimelech.^ And Jotham ran away, and fled, for 
fear of Abimelech his brother. 

A worthless wretch is the unrighteous man, who walks with a deceitful 
mouth. Fraud is in his heart, he devises mischief continually. — Prov. 
6, 12. 14. 



74. JOTHAM'S CURSE IS FULFILLED. 

(Jutlg. 9.) 

"When Abimelech had ruled three years over Israel, then 
God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of 
Shechem, that the cruelty done to the sons of Jerubbaal might 
be repaid, and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their 
brother, who slew them; and upon the men of Shechem, who 
aided him in doing so. And Abimelech fought against the 
city, took it, slew the people that were therein, beat down the 
city, and sowed it with salt. And when all the men of the 
tower of Shechem heard that, they escaped to a fortified 
sanctuary of the god Baal-Berith. This was told to Abime- 
lech; and he went up to Mount Zalvion, he and all the people 
that were with him; and he took an axe in his hand, and cut 
down a bough from the trees, and took it, and laid it on his 
shoulder, and said to the people that were with him : "What 
you have seen me do, make haste, and do as I have done. And 
all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and 
followed Abimelech, and put them to the sanctuary and set it 
on fire, so that all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, 
about a thousand men and women. Then went Abimelech to 
Thehez, and encamped against it, and took it. But there was 
a strong tower within the city, and thither fled all the men 
and women, and all those of the city, and shut the doors be- 
hmd them, and got upon the flat roof of tlie tower. And 
Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, arid went 

* The application is obvious. The noble Gideon nnd his worthy pons had 
declined the protiercd kingdom. The vile, bftse-born Abimoloch I-;uI accoplod it, 
and it would turn out to the mutual ruin of himself and hia eubjoct!?. 



JUDGES. Ill 

hard to the door of the tower to burn it with fire. Now a 
woman cast a piece of a millstone upon Abimelech's head, 
and crushed his skull. Then he called hastily to the young 
man, his armor-bearer, and said to him : Draw thy sword and 
slay me, that men say not of me: A woman slew him. And 
his young man thrust him through, and he died. And when 
the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, all of them 
departed to their places. Thus God rendered the wickedness 
of Abimelech, which he did to his fathers, in slaying his sev- 
enty brothers: and all the evil of the men of Shechem did 
God render upon their heads : and upon them came the curse 
of Jotham, the son of Jerubbaal. 

He who sows iniquity shall reap calamity, and the rod of his punish- 
ment is prepared. — Prov. 22, 8. 



75. JEPHTHAH SUBDUES THE AMMONITES. 
HIS VOW. HE SLAYS EPHRAIM. 

(Judg. 10-12.) 

After Abimelech, there arose to defend Israel, Tola the 
son of Puah, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Mount 
Ephraim, and judged Israel twenty-three years. And 
after him arose Jair, a Gileadite, and judged Israel twenty. 
two years. And the children of Israel did evil again . in 
the sight of the Lord, and served strange gods, and forsook 
the Lord. And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, 
and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into 
the hands of the children of Ammon. Eighteen years they 
oppressed the children of Israel that were on the other side 
of Jordan, in the land of the Amorites, in Gilead. More- 
over, the children of Ammon passed over Jordan, to fight 
also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the 
house of Ephraim; so that Isi'ael was sore distressed. And 
they cried to the Lord. 

Now there was a mighty man of valor, Jephthah^ the Gil- 
eadite;' and his brothers thrust him out, and he fled from 
them, and dwelt in the land of Toh^'^ and vain men gathered 
to him, and went out with him on his expeditions of war or 
plunder. Now when the children of Ammon made war 
against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah 
out of the land of Tob, and said : Come, and be our captain, 
that we may fight with the children of Ammon. Jephthah 

> A family of Maiiasseh ; also inliabitauts of the territory of Gilead, east of the 
Jordan. 

' To the north of Gilead, toward Damascus. 



,112 JUDGES. 

replied: Did not you hate me. and expel me from my father's 
house ? and why have you come to me now when you are in 
distress ? And they said : Therefore we turn again to thee 
now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight against the chil- 
dren of Ammon, and thou shalt become our head over all 
the inhabitants of Gilead. Then Jephthah went with the 
elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain 
over them. 

Jephthah sent a message to the Ammonite king, com- 
plaining of his unjust possession of their land. But that 
king made excuses about some quarrels which had happened 
several hundred years before. The negotiation came to noth- 
ing. And now the spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah, 
and he resolved to meet his foe. But prior to his march, he 
made a vow to the Lord, and said: If Thou shalt indeed 
deliver the children of Ammon into my hands, then it shall 
be, that whatsoever comes forth of the doors of my house to 
meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, 
shall surely be the Lord's, and I will offer it up for a burnt- 
offering. So Jephthah passed over to the children of Ammon 
to fight against them; and the Lord delivered them into his 
hands. And he smote them in the length and breadth of 
their country, and took twenty cities. Thus the children of 
Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel. And 
Jephthah came to Mizpeh to his house, and, behold, his 
daughter came out to meet him with timbrels, and with 
dances. She was his only child; beside her he had neither 
son nor daughter. And when he saw her, he rent his clothes, 
and said: Alas, my daughter 1 thou hast bowed me down 
very low, and thou art one of those that afflict me; for I have 
opened my mouth to the Lord, and I cannot go back. And 
she said to him: My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth 
to the Lord, do to me according to that which has proceeded 
out of thy mouth; since the Lord has taken vengeance for 
thee of thy enemies. And she said to her father: Let this 
thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may 
go down and ascend the mountains, and bewail my virginity, 
I and my fellows. And ho. said: Go. And at the end of 
two months, she returned to her father, who did with her 
according to his vow which he had made.^ And it was a 
custom in Israel, that the daughters of Israel went yearly to 
lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite, four days in a 
year. 

And the men of Epliraim gathered themselves tofrether, and went 
norihward, and said to Jephthah : Wherefore passedbt thou over to light 

» Josephus condemns Jephthah with the followlug words : Offering such an obla- 
tion was neither conformable to the law, nor acceptable to God. 



JUDGES. 113 

against the children of Ammon, and didst not call ns to go with thee ? 
we will burn thy house upon thee with fire. In the same way they had 
before quarrelled Avith Gideon ; but he had the skill to turn aside their 
wrath by a soft answer. They then abused the Gileaditcs, and called 
them bad names. Whereupon Jephthah gathered together all the men of 
Gilead, and fought with and smote Ephraim. And the Gileadites took 
the passages of Jordan before the Ephraimites; and when one of those 
Ephraimit^es who were escaped said : Let me go over; the men of Gilead 
said to him : Art thou an Ephraimite 1 If he said : Nay ; they said to 
him : Say now Shibboleth,i and he said Sibboleth ; for he could not 
frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the 
passages of Jordan : and there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty- 
two thousand. And Jephthah judged Israel six years ; after which 
he died, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead. 

And after him Ibzan of Beth-lehem judged Israel seven years. 

And after him Elov, a Zebulonite, judged Israel ten years. 

And after him Abdon, the son of Hillel, a Pirathonite, judged Israel 
eight years. 

Thou shalt not do so to the Lord thy God : for every abomination to 
the Lord which He hates haA-e they done to their gods ; for even their 
sons and dauglitei-s they have burnt in the fire to their gods. — 5 Mos., 
12, 31. 



THE JUDGES SAMSO]^, ELI, AND SAMUEL. 

C. E. 1161—1095. 
76. HISTORY OF SAMSON. 

(Judg. 13.) 

The cMldren of Israel continued to do -what was evil in 
the sight of the Lord, and He delivered them into the hands 
of the Philistines forty years. And there was a man of 
ZoRAH,2 of the tribe of Dan, whose name was Manoah, and 
his wile had no children. And the angel of the Lord 
appeared to the woman, and said : Behold, thou shalt bear a 
son. Now, therefore, beware, and drink neither wine nor 
strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing, and no razor 
shall come on thy son's head; for the child shall be a JSfaza- 
rite^ to God from his birth; and he shall begin to dehver 
Israel out of the hand of the Philistines. The woman came 
and told her husband, and he entreated the Lord, and said: 
my Lord, let the man of God whom thou didst send, 
come again to us, and teach us what we shall do to the child 
that shall be born. God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; 

^ Shibboleth {phyZ') means both an ear of com, and also a stream. 

2 A town first assigned to Judah, afterwards to Dan. It still exists as a secluded 
mountain-village named Sura. 

^ Nazarite, or one set apart unto God, who was not to drink wine nor ever have 
his hair cut, nor come in contact with a dead body. 

10* 



114 JUDGES. 

and the angel of God came again to the woman as she sat in 
the field ; but Manoah her husband was not with her. And 
the woman made haste, and ran, and told her husband of it. 
He arose, and went after his wife; and came to the man, 
and said to him : Art thou the man that spoke to the woman ? 
I am, was the reply. And Manoah said : If now thy words come 
to pass, what shall be our course with the child, and how shall 
we do to him ? The angel answered: Of all that I said to the 
woman, let her beware, and all that I commanded her, let her 
observe. Manoah said: I pray thee, let us detain thee, until 
we shall have made ready a kid for thee. But the angel said : 
Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread; but if 
thou wilt offer a burnt-offering, thou must offer it to the 
Lord. And Manoah said: What is thy name, that when thy 
sayings come to pass, we may do thee honor? But the 
angel of the Lord said: Why askest thou thus after my 
name, seeing it is Wonderful ? So Manoah took the kid 
with a meat-offering, and offered it upon a rock to the Lord : 
and the angel did wondrously^ and Manoah and his wife 
looked on. And when the flame went up toward heaven 
from off the altar, the angel of the Lord ascended in the 
flame of the altar; and Manoah and his wife saw it and fell 
on their faces to the ground. Then Manoah knew that he 
was an angel of the Lord. And he said to his wife: We 
shall surely die, because we have seen a divine being. But 
his wife said to him: If the Lord were pleased to kill us, He 
would not have received a burnt-offering and a meat-offering 
from our hand, nor would He have let us see all these 
things. 

And the woman bore a son, and called his name Samson.^ 
The child grew, and the Lord blessed him. And the Spirit 
of the Lord began to move him at times in the camp of Dan, 
between Zorah and Bshtaol. 

The cliild shall be consecrated to God from his birth. — Judg. 13, 5. 



11. SAMSON'S MARRIAGE-FEAST AND RIDDLE. 

(Judg. 14.) 

And Samson went down to Timnath ^ and saw there a 
woman of the daughters of the Philistines. He came up, 

» Probably as the angel that appeared to Gideon had done, bringing fire from 
the rock. 

^ (pti^pii/) Josephus interprets it in the souse of stroug. Others derive it from 
lypK/, the sun. To the Hebrew conceptions the rising of the sun is an act of 
victory. 

' limnath^ below Zorah, about three miles S. W. of it. 



JUDGES. 115 

told his father and his mother, and said: I have seen a 
woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines; now 
therefore get her to be my wife.^ Then his father and his 
mother said: Is there not a woman among the daughters of 
thy brethren, that thou goest to take a wife of the profane 
Philistines ? But Samson said: Get her for me, for she 
pleases me well. His father and his mother knew not that 
this was of the Lord; for it became an occasion of assailing 
the Philistines. The parents gave way; at all events, they 
now first went down, with Samson, to see the maiden, and 
ascertain more about her. When they were near the vine- 
hills of Timnathah, and Samson had left his parents a little 
space and entered into a wilderness skirting the road, a 
young lion rushed upon him, roaring. And the Spirit of the 
Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would 
have rent a kid, although he had nothing in his hand; but 
he told not his father or his mother what he had done.'* 
After a' time Samson and his parents descended the same 
road again, and when they came to the spot where Samson 
had the adventure with the lion, he turned aside once more, 
in order to see what had become of the dead lion. Then he 
found that there was a swarm of bees and honey in the car- 
cass of the lion.^ He took some honey in his hands, and went 
on eating, and came to his father and mother, and gave 
them, and they did eat; but he told not them that he had 
taken the honey out of the carcass of the lion. Then his 
father went down to the woman, to claim her, according to 
the usage, for his son. And Samson made a wedding- 
feast, to which he invited thirty of his companions, and 
which was to last for seven days. Delighting in riddles, 
Samson said to them: I will now put forth a riddle to you: 
if you can in any wise tell it me within the seven days of the 
feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty garments 
and thirty changes of raiment:^ but if you cannot declare 
it me, then shall you give me thirty sheets and thirty changes 
of garments. Put forth thy riddle, they said, that we may 
hear it. And he said : Out of the eater came forth food, and 
out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not 
in three days expound the riddle. On the seventh day, they 

i By paying the requisite dowry and gifts to relations. 

20nly by the treachery of Samson's wife the thing conld be known. This is 
also mentioned to show Samson's greatness of soul ; he makes so little ado ahont 
it. that he does not even inform his parents of it. probably in order not to startle 
them at the thought of the danger to which he has been exposed. (Cassel.) 

2 The skeleton of the lion had been thoroughly dried up by the heat, for which 
process scarcely 24 hours are required in the East. 

* Dresses of state, Sunday suit, as we would say— for which the every-day dress 
may be exchanged. 



116 JUDGES. 

said to Samson's wife: Persuade thy husband, that he may 
declare to us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's 
house with fire: have you invited us to impoverish us ? 
Then she wept before him, and said: Thou dost but hate me, 
and lovest me not; thou hast put forth a riddle to the chil. 
dren of my people, and hast not told it me. And he said 
to her: Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, 
and shall I tell it thee ? But she wept before him, and on 
the seventh day he told her, because she had worried him; 
then she told the riddle to the children of her people. On 
the seventh day, before the sun went down, they said: What 
is sweeter than honey ? and what is stronger than a lion ? 
If you had not ploughed with my heifer, you had not found 
out my riddle, he exclaimed,* 

And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he went 
down to Ashkelon ^ and slew thirty men of them, and took 
their spoil, and gave change of garments to the expounders 
of the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up 
to his father's house. 

Whoso keeps his mouth and his tongue, keeps his soul from trouble. — 
Prov. 21, 23. 



78. SAMSON SMITES THE PHILISTINES. 

(Judg. 15.) 

A while after, in the time of wheat harvest, Samson came 
back to claim his wife, when her father told him that in his 
absence she had been given to one of his companions. And 
Samson said: Now I am free of guilt with respect to the 
Philistines if I do evil to them! And he went and caught 
three hundred jackals, tied them two and two by the tails, 
and inserted a burning brand, or torch, between each pair, 
and then let them go into the standing corn of the Philis- 
tines, and burnt up both shocks and standmg corn, as also 
vineyards and olives. 

Then the Phihstines said : "Who has done this ? They an- 
swered- Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he 
had taken his wife, and given her to his companion. And 
the Philistines went up, and burnt her and her father with 
fire. Now Samson said: If you act thus, then will not I 
cease, till I have taken my full revenge against you. He 
attacked the Philistines, and made a great slaughter among 
them. Then he went down and tarried in the cleft of the 

^ Buried treasures come to light, when the soil is turned by the plough. 

2 One of the five cities of the Philistines on the shore of the Mediterranean. 



ANIMALS OF THE BIBLE. 





<:^ 



Hippopotamus. 



Vulture. 




Ehinoceros. 



Owl. 




Yiper. 



Pelican. 

Uvy Type Photo-Eng.Co., Baltiviore. 



ANIMALS OF THE BIBLE. 




Head of a Syrian Ram. 




Sheep witii Fat Tail. 







Wild Ass. 



Syrian BulL 




Lion. 

Levy Type Photo- Eng. Co , Bnllimore. 



JUDGES. 117 

rocn Etam} The Philistines pursued him and invaded that 
part of Judah, where they knew that Samson was concealed. 
And the men of Judah said: Why have you come up against 
us ? To bind Samson have we come up, to do to him as he 
has done to us, was the reply. Then three thousand men of 
Judah went to the top of the rock Etam and said to Samson • 
Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us ? 
what is this that thou hast done to us? And he said: As 
they did to me, so have 1 done to them. They said to him: 
We have come down to bind thee, that wx may deliver thee 
into the hand of the Philistines. And Samson said: Swear 
to me, that you will not fall upon me yourselves. They 
replied: We will bind thee fast, and dehver thee into their 
hands; but surely we will not kill thee. And they bound 
him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock. 
So he came to Lehi, and the Philistines shouted against 
him; but now the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon 
him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax 
that was burnt w^ith fire, and his bands loosed from off his 
hands. And he found a fresh jaw-bone of an ass, and put 
forth his hand and took it, and slew a thousand men there- 
with. And Samson said: 

"With the jaw-bone of an ass 
A mass, yea masses : 
With the jaw-bone of an ass 
I slew a thousand men. 

Now from the violent exertion of strength in pursuing 
and slaying his enemies, he was very thirsty, and called on 
the Lord, saying: Thou hast given this great dehverance 
into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, 
and fall into the hands of these unclean Philistines. And the 
hollow-place which is in Lehi opened, and water came there- 
out; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he 
revived. 

Then Samson went to Gaza} And when it was told the 
Gazites, saying: Samson is come hither; they surrounded the 
walls and barred the gates, and lay in wait for him in the 
gate of the city, and were quiet all the night thinking: to- 
morrow, when it is day, we shall kill him. But Samson 
guessing their evil designs, arose at midnight, and seized the 
city gate, and the two posts, and tore them up, with the 
cross-bar on them, and put them upon his shoulders, and 
carried them up to the top of the mountain before Hebron. 

Wisdom is better than strength. — Eccl. 9, 10. 

^ In the territory of Simeon. 

3 One of the chief cities of the Philistines : now in Arahic Ghuzzeh. 



118 JUDGES. 



19. SAMSON'S DEATH. 

(Judg. 16.) 

Afterward, lie loved a woman in tlie valley of Soreh,^ 
whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines 
came up, and said to her: Persuade him and see wherein his 
great strength lies, and by what means we may prevail 
against him, to subdue him; and we will give thee every one 
of us eleven hundred pieces of silver.^ Now Delilah said to 
Samson: Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength 
lies, and wherewith thou canst be bound to subdue thee ? 
Samson at first deluded her, and said: If they bind me with 
seven wet cords that were never dried, then I shall be as 
weak as any other man. When he was asleep ^ she bound 
him, as he had said. In another room of the house, she had 
placed Philistine lurkers, who were ready, upon notice to 
seize him. Now suddenly arousing him, she exclaimed: 
The Philistines are upon thee, Samson ! He sprang up and 
broke the cords, as a thread of tow is broken, when it touches 
the fire. So the secret o:^ his strength was not known. 
Again he was beset by her to reveal the secret; and she now 
added reproaches to her entreaties. Upon which he told 
her: If they would bind him with new ropes with which no 
work was ever done, he would be helpless as another man; 
but when this experiment was also tried, he broke them off 
his arms as a thread. A third time he deceived her, by say- 
ing: If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the 
web, I shall be weak as another man. In his sleep she did 
so and fastened it as he had told her, and cried out again: 
Samson! The Philistines are upon thee! He awoke, and 
gave one wrench, and the web tore, his seven locks were free, 
and he went away as strong as ever. 

And she said to him: How canst thou say: I love thee, 
when thy heart is not with me? Thou hast mocked me these 
three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength 
lies. And she pressed him daily with her words, and urged 
him, so that his soul was vexed to death. He, therefore, at 
length, revealed to her his whole heart, and said: There has 
not come a razor upon my head, for I have been a Nazarite 
to God from my birth : if I be shaven, then my strength will 
go from me, I shall become weak, and be like any other man. 
Now when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she 

1 A village to the north of Eleutheropolis, near Zorah. 

^ The number of the i)rincesi were five (according to Judges 3, 3), hence the sum 
pledged amounted to 5,500 ehekels, between 3,000 and 3,500 dollars. 
' And full of drink, says Josephus. 



JUDGES. 119 

sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying: Come 
up this once, for he has told me all his heart.* Then the lords 
of the Philistines came up to her, and brought the money in 
their hands. She made him sleep upon her knees : and caused 
a man to shave the seven locks "^ of his head, and again she 
cried out: The Philistines are upon thee, Samson! He 
awoke out of his sleep, and thought: I will go out, as at other 
times before, and shake myself. For he knew not that the 
Lord was departed from him. But the Philistines seized 
him, brought him down to Gaza and bound him with brazen 
fetters,^ and he did grind in the prison-house. 

But the hair of his head began to grow again after he was 
shaven. Then the lords of the Philistines gathered together, 
to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon^'^ their god, and to rejoice; 
for they said: Our god has delivered into our hands Samson 
our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, who has slain 
so many of us. And when their hearts were merry, they 
said: Call for Samson that he may make us sport.^ And 
they called for Samson out of the prison-house; and he 
played for them: and they placed him between the pillars. 
Then Samson said to the lad who held him by the hand: 
Suffer me to feel the pillars whereupon the house stands that 
I may lean upon them. Now the house was full of men and 
women, and all the lords of the Philistines were there; there 
were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, 
that looked on while Samson made sport. ^ And Samson 
called to the Lord, and said: Lord God, remember me, I pray 
thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, God, 
that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two 
eyes. And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon 
which the house stood, and on which it was borne up, of the 
one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And 
Samson said: Let me die with the Philistines. And he 
bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon 

1 Old Jewish expositors say that she knew this, because, " words of truth are 
readily reco^iizable, and because she felt sura that he would not take the name of 
God in vain.^' 

2 The strength of Samson depended, not on the external locks, but on the conse- 
cration of which they were the symbol. 

3 A Jewish expositor (Mishna Sota, cap. 8) observes: By a just judgment of 
God Samson loses his eves, and is fettered with chains, because heretofore he fol- 
lowed his eyes too much, and allowed himself to be fettered by the allurements of 
the senses. The Jewish Eabbis are wont to call this, measure for measure. 

"» Dagon, the national idol of the Philistines, so called from Jl (Dag) a fish. It 
had the human form down to the waist, with that of a fish below, 

^ A people shows its worst side when it heaps mockery and insult on a defence- 
less foe. 

* The house being probably in the form of a modern Turkish kiosk, " consisting 
of a spacious hall, the roof of which rested in front on four columns ; two of them 
standing at the ends, and two close together in the centre."— Faber, Archaeol. p. 
444. 



120 JUDGES. 

the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the 
dead whom he slew at his death were more than they whom 
he slew in his life.^ Then his brothers and all the house of 
his father came down, and took him, and brought him up, 
and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the burying- 
place of Manoah his father. And he judged Israel twenty 
years. 

Who is mighty ? He who subdues his evil inclination. — Sayings of the 
Fathers, 4, 1. 

1 The tragedy ends terribly. Laughter and shout and drunken revel are at their 
highest, wfien Samson bends the pillars with great force: they break, the building 
falls, — a terrific crash, and the temple is a vast sepulchre. O Dagon, where is thy 
victory? O Gaza, where is thy strength? Princes and priests, together, with cupa 
at their lips, and mockery in their hearts, are crushed by the falling stone. The 

f galleries, with their burdens, precipitate themselves upon the heads of those be- 
ow. Death was swifter than any rescue ; the change from the sounds of rejoicing 
to groans and the rattle of death, terrible as the lightning. In the midst oi theni, 
great and joyous stood the hero and met his death. Since Samson must die, he 
could not have fallen greater. The blind hero died as the great victor, who, in 
penitence and prayer, expiated, by suffering and death, the errors of which he had 
been guilty.— Casse^. 



BOOK OF EUTH. 



so. RUTH, AND NAOMI HER MOTHER-IN-LAW. 

(Ruth 1.) 

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in 
the land, and a man of Beth-lehem-judah went to sojourn in 
the country of Moab, with his wife, and his two sons. 
The name of the man was Elimelech, of his wife Naomi, and 
of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion. Not long after Elime- 
lech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons. These took 
themselves wives of the women of Moab; the name of the 
one was Orpah, of the other Ruth. Having dwelt there about 
ten years, Mahlon and Chilion died also; so Naomi was de- 
prived of her two sons and her husband. Now she arose 
with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the 
country of Moab; for she had heard that the Lord had visi- 
ted his people in giving them bread. But when they went 
on their way to return to the land of Judah, Naomi said to 
her two daughters-in-law: Go, return each one to her moth- 
er's house ; the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt 
with the dead and with me. The Lord grant you that you 
may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then 
she kissed them. They lifted up their voice, and wept, and 
said to her: Surely we will return with thee to thy people. 
But Naomi said: Return back, my daughters; why will you 
go with me? have I any more sons that they may become 
your husbands? Nay, my daughters, the hand of the Lord 
is gone out against me. And they lifted up their voice, and 
wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, and de- 
parted; but Ruth cleaved to her. But Naomi said: Behold, 
thy sister-in-law has gone back to her people, and to her gods; 
return thou after thy sister-in-law. Entreat me not, was Ruth's 
reply, to leave thee, to return from following thee; for 
whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will 
lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God. 
Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried : the 
Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee 
6 



122 RUTH. 

and me. When she saw that Ruth was determined to go with 
her, then she left off speaking to her. 

So they went until they came to Beth-lehem. And 
when they had come, all the city was moved about them; 
and they said: Is this Naomi? And she said: Call me not 
Naomi/ call me Mara; for the Almighty has dealt very bit- 
terly with me. I went out full, and the Lord has brought 
me home again empty. So Naomi returned, and Ruth the 
Moabitess her daughter-in-law with her in the beginning of 
the barley harvest. 

Thou desirest truth in the inward part. — Ps. 51, 6. 
Love is strong as death. — Solom. Song, 8, 6. 



81. RUTH GLEANING IN THE FIELD OF BOAZ. 

(Ruth 2.) 

Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a man of great 
wealth, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth said to Naomi: 
Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after any 
one in whoge sight I may find grace.^ And she said: Go, 
my daughter. She went, and gleaned in a field after the 
reapers ; and it so chanced that the portion of the field be- 
longed to Boaz. 

And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said to the 
reapers: The Lord be with you, and they answered him: 
The Lord bless thee.^ Then Boaz said to his young man 
who was set over the reapers: "Whose damsel is this? And 
the young man answered: It is the Moabitish damsel who 
came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab; for she 
said: I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers 
among the sheaves; so she came, and has continued from 
the morning until now; it is but little that she rested in the 
house. Then Boaz said to Ruth: Hearest thou not, my 
daughter? Go not to glean in another field, nor go from 
hence, but abide here close by my maidens. Let thy eyes 
be on the field that they reap, and go thou after them ; be- 
hold, I have charged the men that they shall not touch thee: 
and when thou art thirsty, go to the vessels, and drink. Then 
she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and 
said: Why have I found grace in thy eyes, that thou should- 
est take notice of me, seeing I am but a stranger ? But 

^Tho meaning o^ Naomi Cpj/*J) is, pleasant, sweet, o{ Mara (TT^O), bitter. 

"^ The Israelites were commanded by their law to be merciful to the poor. The 
cornera of the fields were not to be reaped. 3 Mos. 19, 9 ; 23. 2-2. If a sheaf should 
be accidentally letl in the field, it was to be allowed to remain there. 5 Mou. 24, 
19. This {^'lain in the corners, and these odd sheaves in the field, were for the poor. 

s These salutations are heard at this day in the East. 



EUTH. 123 

Boaz answered and said to her: I have "been fully told every- 
thing that thou hast done to thy mother-in-law since the 
death of thy husband; and how thou hast left thy father and 
thy mother, and the land of thy birth, and hast come to a people 
which thou knewest not heretofore. May the Lord recom- 
pense thy work, and may a full reward be given thee of the 
Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou hast come to 
seek refuge. Then Ruth said: Let me find favor in thy 
sight, my lord; for thou hast comforted me, and hast spoken 
friendly to thy handmaid, though I am not like one of thy 
handmaidens. And Boaz said to her at meal-time: Come 
thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the 
vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers, and he reached 
her roasted corn,^ and she ate, and was satisfied, and had 
more than enough. And when she rose up to glean, Boaz 
commanded his men, sa3ring: Let her glean also among the 
sheaves, and do not vex her; and let also some of the bunches 
fall on purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean 
them, and rebuke her not. So Ruth gleaned in the field 
until the evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it 
wa^ about an ephah (28 lbs.) of barley. 

And she took it, and went into the city; and she brought 
forth, and gave to her mother-in-law what she had left over 
after she was satisfied. And Naomi said to her: Where 
hast thou gleaned to-day? and where didst thou work? 
blessed be he that took notice of thee. And she said : The 
man's name with whom I worked is Boaz. And Naomi 
said: Blessed be the Lord, who has not left off His kindness 
to the living and to the dead. The man is near of kin to us, 
one of our next kinsmen. And Ruth said: He said to me 
also: Thou shalt keep close by my men, until they have 
ended all my harvest. Then Naomi replied: It is good, my 
daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, and that they 
meet thee not in any other field. So Ruth kept close by the 
maidens of Boaz to glean to the end of the barley -harvest, 
and of the wheat-harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in- 
law. 

Deal thy bread to the hungry. — Isa. 58, 7. 

82. RUTH MARRIES BOAZ. 

(Ruth 3, 4.) 

Then Naomi said to Ruth: My daughter, shall I not seek 

1 It is made thus : a quantity of the best ears, not too ripe, are plucked with the 
Btalks attached. These are tied into small parcels, a blazing fire is kindled with 
dry grass and thorn bushes, and the corn-heads are held in it until the chaff is 
mostly burned off. The grain is thus sufRciently roasted to be eaten, and it is a 
favorite article all over the country.— Thomson's"The Land and the Book, II, 510. 



124 RUTH. 

a resting-place for thee, that it may be well with thee ? 
And now is not Boaz our kinsman? Behold, he winnows 
barley to-night in the threshing-floor. Therefore, wash, and 
anoint thyself, and put on thy raiment, and go down to the 
threshing-floor, but do not make thyself known, until he has 
finished eating and drinking, and he will tell thee what thou 
shalt do. And she said: All that thou sayest to me I will 
do. ..^ 

And she went down to the floor. "When Boaz had eaten 
and drunk, and his heart was merry, she said to him: I am 
Euth, thy handmaid; spread therefore thy protecting wing 
over thy handmaid; for thou art a redeemer.^ And he said: 
Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter! I will do to 
thee all that thou requirest; for all the city of my people 
knows that thou art a virtuous woman. And now it is true 
that I am a kinsman: but there is yet one nearer than I. 
Also he said: Bring thy cloak, and hold it. * And when she 
held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on 
her, and she went into the city. "When she came to her 
mother-in-law, she told her all that the man had done. 
And she said: These six measures of barley he gave me- for 
he said to me: Go not empty to thy mother-in-law. Then 
Naomi said: Sit still, my daughter, until thou knowest how 
the matter will turn out, for the man will not rest, until he 
has finished the matter this day. 

Then Boaz went up to the gate^ and sat down there; and 
behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz had spoken was passing 
by, to whom he said: Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down 
here. And he sat down. Then Boaz took ten ^ men of the 
elders of the city, and said: Sit down here, and they sat 
down. And he said to the kinsman . Naomi who has come back 
out of the country of Moab, sells a parcel of land, which be- 
longed to Elimelech. And I thought to inform thee, and 
say: Buy it before the inhabitants, and before the elders of 
my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it, but if thou 
wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know, for there 
is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee. And 
he said: I will redeem it. Then Boaz said: When thou buy- 
est the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of 
Euth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, in order to raise 

1 It was an ancient .law in Israel (Bent. 25, 5) that when a man died without 
issue, his brother was bound to marry his widow, and to reirard the son she bcirs 
as heir to the name and possessions of the deceased husband. In accordance with 
the spirit of this law the oblisi^ation passes over to the nearest relatives of the de- 
ceased, if there be no brother. And such a rehuive was called a Ji'edeemer. 

^ The gate of the city was in those days the chief place for all public assemblies. 

3 In post-biblical times it was a maxim that an assembly for religious worship 
mutft couBist of ten persons.— Mishua banhedriu, 1, G. 



EUTH. 125 

up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. But the kins- 
man said : I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar my own 
inheritance: redeem thou my right of redemption for thy- 
self, for I can not redeem it. 

And Boaz said to the elders, and to all the people : You are 
witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, 
and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of 
Naomi. Moreover, Ruth, the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, 
have I acquired to be my wife, to raise up the name of the 
dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not 
cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his 
place; you are witnesses this day. And all the people that 
were in the gate, and the elders, said: We are witnesses. 
The Lord make the woman that is come into thy house 
like Rachel and like Leah, who both built up the house of 
Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in 
Bethlehem. 

So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and the Lord 
gave her a son. Now the women said to Naomi: Blessed be 
the Lord, who has not left thee this day without a kinsman, 
and his name may be famous in Israel. He shall be to thee 
a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thy old age: for 
thy daughter-in-law who loves thee, who is better to thee 
than seven sons, has borne him. And Naomi took the child, 
and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse to it. And the 
women her neighbors gave it a name, saying: There is a son 
born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the 
father of Jesse, the father of David. 

The woman that fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give ye her of 
the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates. — Prov. 
31, 30, 31. 

Hide not thyself from thy own flesh (kindred and countrymen). — Isa. 
58, 7. 

Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.— 
Prov. 31, 29. 



THE FIEST 

BOOK OF SAMUEL. 



83. SAMUEL'S CHILDHOOD. 

(1 Sam. 1, 2.) 

There was a man at Ramathaim-zophim * in Mount Epli- 
raim, whose name was Elkanah, an Ephrathite.'^ He had 
two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah had children, 
but Hannah had none. This man went up out of his city 
yearly to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts in 
Shiloh. And when the time was that Elkanah offered and 
held, as it was customary, a sacrificial repast, he gave to 
Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, 
portions of the sacrifice. But to Hannah he gave the most 
valued portion, for he loved Hannah, although the Lord had 
withheld children from her. Peninnah, however, provoked 
her sorely on that account, year by year, whenever he 
went up to the House of the Lord; therefore, Hannah 
wept and did not eat. Then Elkanah said to her: Han- 
nah, why ' weepest thou ? and why eatest thou not ? and 
why is thy heart grieved ? Am I not better to thee than 
ten sons ? 

Once when they were in Shiloh and after they had eaten 
and drunk, Hannah was again in bitterness of soul and she 
went into the House of God. Now Eli, the high-priest, sat 
upon a seat by a post of the Temple of the Lord. Hannah 
prayed to the Lord and wept much. And she made a vow, 
and said: Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the 
affliction of thy handmaid, and remember me, and give me 
a man-child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of 
his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head. And 

1 Or Ramxih, about six miles northward from Jerusalem. It was doubtless built 
upon two hills, hence the dual form liauiath«im. 

2 Samuel was by birth a member of the tribe of Levi, descending -from Kohaih, 
Levi's second son. (I. Chron. 0. '2-2, 23.) He is called an "Ephralhiio" or an Ephra- 
imite, because as far as his civil standint? was concerned, he was reckoned to the 
tribe of Ephraim. The Levites were re<rarded as belonjring to the tribes in which 
they had their original homes. (Ewald, Ilistory, II. 433.) 



SAMUEL. 127 

as she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her. 
Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but 
her voice was not heard; therefore Eli thought she was 
drunk. And he said to her: How long wilt thou be drunk ? 
put away thy wine from thee. Hannah answered and said: 
No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: 1 have 
drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out 
my soul before the Lord. Count not thy handmaid for a 
worthless woman; for out of the abundance of my grief and 
misery have I spoken hitherto. Then Eli answered and said : 
Go in peace ! and the G-od of Israel grant thee thy petition 
that thou hast asked of Him. And *she said : Let thy hand- 
maid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, 
and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad. 

They rose up in the morning early, worshipped before the 
Lord, and returned to their house at Eamah: and the Lord 
remembered her. For a son was born to her, and she called 
him Samuel.^ 

And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, 
and brought him to Eli, and said: my lord, as thy soul 
lives, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, 
praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed; and the Lord 
has given me my petition which I asked of Him: Therefore 
also I have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall 
be lent to the Lord. 

Then Hannah prayed, and said : 
My heart rejoice th in the Lord ; 

My horn '^ is exalted in the Lord ; 
My mouth is enlarged over mine enemies, 

Because I rejoice in thy salvation. 
There is none holy as the Lord, 

For there is none besides Thee ; 
Neither is there any rock like our God. 

Talk no more so exceeding proudly, 
Let not arrogancy come out of your mouth j 

For the Lord is a God of knowledge, 
And by him actions are weighed. 

The bows of the mighty men are broken, 
And they that stumbled are girded with strength. 

They that were full have hired out themselves for bread. 
And they that were hungiy are at rest : 

So that the barren hath borne seven, 
And she that hath many children is waxed feeble. 

The Lord killeth, and maketh alive : 
He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. 

The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich : 
He bringeth low, and lifteth up. 

^ *7N-"irDI!/, i. e. the heard or asked of God. 

2 The horn is an emblem of power and of dignity : the exaltation of the horn ex- 
presses elevation of privilege and honor, and its depression represents the 
opposite. 



128 SAMUEL. 

He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, 
And lifteth up the beggar from the dung-hill. 

To set them among princes, 
And to make them inherit the throne of glory ; 

For the pillars of tlie earth are the Lord's, 
And He hath set the world upon them ; 

He will keep the feet of his saints, 
And the Avicked shall be silent in darkness ; 

For by strength shall no man prevail. 
The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken to pieces: 

Out of heaven shall He thunder upon them. 
The Lord shall judge the ends of the earth. 
Wherewithal shall a young man keep his way pure ? If he taketh heed 
according to Thy word. — Ps: 119, 9. 



84. SAMUEL IS LEFT AT SHILOH. ELI'S 

WICKED SONS. SAMUEL IS CALLED 

BY THE LORD. 

(1 Sam. 2. 3.) 

Thus Samuel remained with Eli, and ministered to the 
Lord. The child's dress, an ephod of white Hnen, the ordi- 
nary garb of the priests, marked his dedication to the Lord's 
service. Moreover, his mother made him a httle coat/ and 
brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with 
her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. 

Samuel grew in stature, and conducted himself so wisely and piously, 
that he was in favor, both with the Lord, and with men ; and the Lord 
began early to reveal Himself to him. Samuel did not suffer himself to be 
turned away from the ways of the Lord by the two wicked sons of Eli, 
Hophni and Phinehas, whose sins were exceedingly great, and Avho com- 
mitted many acts of violence. Their father did indeed speak to them, 
and said : Why do you do such things 1 for I hear of your evil dealings by 
all this people; nay, my sons, for it is no good report that I hear. "You 
make the Lord's people transgress. If a man sin against another, the 
judge shall judge him, but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall 
entreat for him "? 

This reproof Avas entirely too mild, and seems to have been given at too 
late a period, for it is assigned as a reason why it took no effect, that the 
Lord had determined to slay them. These young men ought to have 
been removed entirely from the service of the altar and the tabcrnnclc. At 
any rate, his rebukes should have been more seasonable, more frequent, 
and more severe, for conduct which was so enormously wicked, the more 
so, as Eli received an admonition and solemn message from an anonyn^- 
ous prophet, who came and said to him : Thus saith the Lord : i)id 
I plainly appear to the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in 
Phai*aoh's house ? And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to 
be My priest, to offer upon My altar, to burn incense, to Avcar an ejdiod 
before Me ? and did I give to the house of thy father all the offerings 

* ^""i'P {metr) is the same used for the high priest's robe (2 Mos. 28, 4, 31, 34). 
We find this ?7ieU continuing? to be Samuel's dress nfter he was grown up (1 Sam. 
15, 27), and the mention of it by the witch of Endor. (1 Sam. 28, 14.) 



SAMUEL. 129 

made by fire of the children of Israel ? Wherefore kick ye at My sacrifice 
and at My offering, which I have commanded in My habitation ; and 
honorest thy sons above Me, to make yourselves fat with the chief of 
all the offerings of Israel My people 1 Therefore the Lord God of Israel 
saith : I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should 
walk before Me for ever ; but now the Lord saith : Be it far from Me ; 
for them that honor Me I will honor, and they that despise Me shall be 
lit^htly esteemed. Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thy arm, 
and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in 
thy house. And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon 
thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas ; in one day they shall die both of 
them. And I will raise Me up a faithful priest, who shall do according to 
that which is in My heart and in My mind : and I will build him a sure 
house. And it shall come to pass, that every one who is left in thy 
house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of 
bread, and shall say : Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priest's offices, 
that I may eat a piece of bread. 

In those days the word of the Lord was precious ; and there was no 
vision promulgated. Some time had elapsed since God's awful message 
was communicated to Eli by the prophet ; and yet no reformation had 
taken place in his sons. 

And it came to pass, at that time, when Eli was laid down 
in his place, and his eyes had begun to grow dim; he could 
not see ; and ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of 
the Lord, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid 
down to sleep, that the Lord called SamueP and he answered: 
Here am L And he ran to Eli, and said: Here am I; for 
thou calledst me. And he said: I called not; lie down again. 
And he went and lay down. And the Lord called yet again: 
Samuel ! And Samuel arose, and went to Eli, and said : 
Here am I; for thou didst call me. And he answered: I 
called not, my son; lie down again. Now Samuel did not 
yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet re- 
vealed to him. And the Lord called Samuel again the third 
time. And he arose, and went to Eli, and said: Here am I; 
for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the Lord 
had called the child. Therefore Eli said to Samuel: Go, lie 
down: and it shall be, if it happens that thou art called, thou 
shalt say: Speak, Lord; for Thy servant hears. So Samuel 
went and lay down in his place. And the Lord called as at 
other times: Samuel! Samuel! Then Samuel answered, 
Speak ; for Thy servant hears. 

And the Lord said to Samuel: Behold, I will do a thing 
in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that hears it 
shall tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all the 
things which I have spoken concerning his house; both the 
beginning and the ending. For I have told him, that I will 
judge his house for ever, for the iniquity which he knew: 

1 Joscphus says that Samuers call to the prophetic office happened when he had 
just completed his twelfth year. — Antiq. V. X. 4. 



130 SAMUEL. 

because his sons brought curses upon themselves ; they made 
themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And therefore 
I have sworn to the House of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli"s 
house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever. 
Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the 
house of the Lord. He feared to tell Eli the vision. But 
Eli called Samuel, and said: Samuel, my son. And he an- 
swered: Here am T. And he said: What is the thing that 
the Lord has said to thee ? I pray thee hide it not from me: 
God do so to thee, and more also (that is, God punish thee 
too), if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that 
He said to thee. And Samuel told him every word, and hid 
nothing from him. "When Eli heard it, he said humbly: It 
is the Lord: let Him do what seems good to Him. 

Withhold not correction from a child ; if thou beat him with the rod, 
he will not die. — Prov. 23, 13. 

It is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him. — 1 Sam. 3, 18. 



85. THE ISRAELITES DEFEATED BY THE PHIL- 
ISTINES. 

(1 Sam. 4—7.) 

And the words which the Lord had spoken to Samuel 
came true, for the children of Israel went out against the 
Philistines to battle, and pitched beside Ehen-ezer} The Phil- 
istines made their camp at Aphek^^ and put themselves in ar- 
ray against Israel; and when they joined battle, Israel was 
smitten; and the Philistines slew of the army in the field 
about four thousand men. When the army of Israel came 
back to their camp after the battle, the elders said: Where- 
fore has the Lord smitten us to-day before the Philistines ? 
Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of Shi- 
loh to us, that, when it comes among us, it may save us out 
of the hand of our enemies. So the people sent to Shiloh, 
that they might bring from thence the ark of the covenant. 
Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, came themselves 
to the camp, bearing the sacred shrine between them. When 
it was brought into the camp, the people were glad, and the 
noise sounded far off on every side. The Philistines heard 
the shouting and were sorely afraid. Woe unto us! they ex- 
claimed, who shall deliver us out of the hands of this mighty 
god ? Then they said to one another: Let us be strong, and 
fight like men, that we may not be servants to the Hebrews.^ 
And they fought again and Israel was smitten, and they fled 

J The place afterwards so named by Samuel. 

3 Toward the western frontier of Judah, not very far from Mizpah of Benjamin. 

' This was the name by which the Israelites were known to foreign nations. 




Bearing the Holy Utensils to Rome, from the Arch of Titus. 




Water-Carriers (p. 97). 



Li'vil Ti/pe Pholo Em;. Co.. Bnltimore. 



SAMUEL. 131 

every man into his tent; and there was a very great slaughter: 
for there fell of Israel thirty thousand men. And the ark 
of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and 
Phinehas, were slain. 

And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and 
came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes rent, and earth 
upon his head. While Eli sat upon a seat by the way-side 
watching, for his heart trembled for the ark of God, he heard 
a loud wail arise. What does this tumult mean? the old 
man asked. And the man came in hastily, and told Eli. 
Now Eli was ninety -eight years old; he could not see. And 
the man said to Eli: I am he who came out of the army, and 
I fled to-day out of the army. And he said: What happened 
there, my son? And the messenger answered and said: 
Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has been 
also a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons 
also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is 
taken. And when he made mention of the ark of God, Eli 
fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and 
his neck broke, and he died. He had judged Israel forty 
years. 

Meanwhile the Philistines carried the ark of God to Ash- 
dod,^ and placed it in the temple of their god Dagon. But 
when they arose early in the morning, behold, Dagon was 
fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. 
Then they lifted it up, and set it in its place again. And 
when they arose early on the next morning, behold, Da- 
gon was fallen upon his face to the ground again before the 
ark of the Lord; and the head of Dagon, and both the 
palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the 
stump of the idol was left. After that the hand of the Lord 
was heavy upon the people of Ashdod, and smote them with 
diseases. Therefore they carried the ark to GaiJi.^ And it 
was so that the hand of the Lord was also against this city 
with a very great destruction. Therefore they sent the ark 
of God to Ekron? And the Ekronites cried out, sajdng: 
They have brought the ark of the God of Israel to us, to 
slay us and our people. So the Lords of the Philistines 
resolved to send back the ark with presents to the Israehtes, 
after it had been with them seven months. They sent it to 
Beth' Shemesh,^ whence it was brought to Kirjath-Jearim^ 

» Ashdod, 34 miles west of Jerusalem. It was the property of the tribe of 
Judah, but the Philistines either retained or retook it. 

2 Gath was another city of the Philistines not very far from Ashdod. 

3 Ekron^ one of the capital cities of the Philistines, 24 miles west of Jerusa- 
lem. 

* Betk-shemesk on the border of Judah, one of the cities of the priests. 
5 The modem Kuryet-el-Enab (city of grapes), as Robinson suggests, ten miles 
from Beth-shemesh. 



132 SAMUEL. 

into the house of Abinadab, and he sanctified Eleazar his 
son, to keep the ark of the Lord. 

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have 
mouths, but they speak not ; eyes have they, but they see not ; they have 
ears, but they hear not, feet have they, but they walk not, neither speak 
they through their throat. They that make them are like to them ; so is 
every one that trusteth in them. O Israel, trust thou in the Lord. 



86. SAMUEL JUDGES ISRAEL. DEFEAT OF 
THE PHILISTINES. 

(1 Sam. 7, 8.) 

Yet twenty years longer the Israehtes groaned under the 
yoke of the Philistines; and all lamented after the Lord and 
entreated His return. Then Samuel spoke to all the house 
of Israel, saying: If you do return to the Lord with all 
your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth 
from among you, and prepare your hearts to the Lord, and 
serve Him only, and He will deliver you out of the hand of 
the Philistines. Then the children of Israel did put away 
Baalim and Ashtaroth; there was a general return to the 
worship of God; they destroyed their images and altars, and 
served the Lord only. And Samuel said: Gather all Israel 
to Mizpeh,'^ and I will pray for you to the Lord, that He may 
accept your repentance, strengthen your resolutions, and give 
you deliverance from your enemies. 

And they were gathered to Mizpeh, and drew water, and 
poured it out before the Lord, to denote their grief and 
deep repentance,^ and that if their heads were waters, and 
their eyes fountains of tears, all would be too little to mourn 
for their aggravated guilt; and they fasted on that day, and 
said there : We have sinned against the Lord. 

And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh; he 
took upon himself the office of a judge from this time forward, 
and all Israel, even from Dan ^ to Bej:r-sheba knew that 
Samuel was appointed to be the prophet of the Lord. 

And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel 
were gathered to Mizpeh, they went up against them, sus- 
pecting that they were forming some scheme to throw off 
their yoke. The Israelites were greatly afraid and said to 
Samuel: Cease not to cry to the Lord our God for us, that 
He will save us out of the hand of the Philistines. 

1 Mizpeh in the north of Benjamin. 

2 Thus the Targum; Comp. Ps. 22, 15. 

^I)an being m the extreme north, as Beer-sheba was the extreme south, the pro- 
verbial exprepsion: "From Dan to Beer-sheba," came into common use to 
oxpresB the whole extent of Paleetine. 



SAMUEL. 133 

And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it whole as 
a burnt offering to the Lord : and lie cried to the Lord for 
Israel ; and the Lord answered him. As Samuel was offer- 
ing up the burnt -offering, the Philistines drew near to battle 
against Israel: but the Lord thundered with a great thunder' 
on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them,^ and 
they were smitten before Israel. Then Samuel took a stone 
and set it between Mizpeh and Shen ; he set it up as a memo- 
rial of this victory, gained at the same place where they had 
been vanquished by the Philistines, and the ark taken from 
them, and called the name of it Eben-ezer, that is, the stone 
of help, saying: Hitherto has the Lord helped us; express- 
ing thankfulness for past deliverances, and hope that He 
would go on and complete the work. 

So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more 
into the coast of Israel: and the hand of the Lord was 
against them all the days of Samuel. And the cities which 
the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, 
from Ekron even to Gath: and the coasts thereof did Israel 
deliver out of the hands of the Philistines. And there was 
peace between Israel and the other inhabitants of Canaan, 
So Samuel judged Israel all the days of his hfe.^ 

He superintended besides a companj of youthful prophets -who were 
receiving an official training in schools or (to adopt a modern term) col- 
leges of Pi'ophets. Such companies we find in his lifetime at Ramah 
(1 Sam. 19, 20); others afterwards at Bethel, Jericho, Gilgal, and else- 
where. So important Avas this work wrought by him, that he is classed 
in Holy Scripture with Moses (Jer. 15, 1 ; Ps. 99, 6). 

In pursuance of his duties as judge he Averit from year to year in cir- 
cuit to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israef in all those places. 
And his return was to Ramah ; for there Avas his house ; and there he 
built an altar to the Lqrd. Samuel Avas the last of the judges, because 
he Avas the first Avho gOA^erned all the tribes and thus prepared and made pos- 
sible the Monarchy. The folloAving 15 judges administered the public 
affairs of Israel : 

1. Othniel. 

2. Ehud, the Judge with the double-edged dagger. 

3. Shamgar, the deliA^erer Avith the ox-goad. 

. \ Deborah, the female Judge and prophetess. 
' ( Barak, the military hero. 

5. GiDEOx, or Jerubbaal, the Judge who refused to be King. 

6. Abimelech, the fratricide and thorn-bush King. 

7. ToLAH of Issachar. 

8. Jair, the Gileadite, 

9. Jephthah, the Judge of the a^ow. 
10. Ibzan, of Bethlehem. 

1 They interpreted the thunder as the ausAver to Samuel's prayer. 

2 According to Josephus, there Avas also an earthquake, so that they fled with 
great precipitation, 

5 As civil judge. The military leadership belonged to Saul, Avhen he became 
king. 



134 SAMUEL. » 

11. Elon, the Zebulonite. 

12. Abdon, the Pirathonite. 

13. Samson, the Nazarite Judge. 
14 Eli, the High-priest. 

15. Samuel, the last of the Judges and inaugurator of the monarchy. 
Come, and let us return to the Lord ; for He has torn, and He will 
heal us ; He has smitten, and He will bind us up. — Hos. 6, 1. 



87. THE ISRAELITES PETITION TO 
HAVE A KING. 

(1 Sam. 8.) 

When Samuel was old and Ms. strength diminished, he 
appointed his two sons, Joel and Abiah, to assist him as 
judges, and fixed them in the southern parts of the land. 
But they did not walk in his ways, they turned aside after 
lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment. Then all 
the elders of Israel gathered together, and came to Samuel 
to Ramah, and said: Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk 
not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the 
nations. 

But the thing displeased Samuel, and he prayed to the 
Lord for direction in this case. And the Lord said to Sam- 
uel: Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say 
to thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have 
rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.^ Yet warn 
them solemnly, and show them the manner of the king who 
shall reign over them. 

And Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people 
that asked of him a king, and said: This will be the manner 
of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your 
sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and-for 
his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots; and 
he will appoint for himself captains over thousands, and cap- 
tains over fifties; and will set them to plough his ground, 
and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, 
and the instruments of his chariots; and he will take your 
daughters to be confectioners, and to be cooks, and to be 
bakers; and he v/ill take your fields, and your vineyards, and 
your olive-yards, even the best of them, and give them to 
his servants; and he will take the tenth of your seed, and of 
your vineyards, and give to his officers and to his servants; 

1 God has acted as their Kins; in times past, making their laws, chooslns: their 
poveinors, direcring in all ditliciilt cases, making war" and peace, and thus order- 
ing all those things, which in other States were left to the King. Thns it 
appears that their government was a Theocracy (government of a State by the im- 
mediate administration of God). 



I 



SAMUEL. 135 

and lie will take your men-servants, and your maid -servants, 
and your choicest young men, and your asses, and put them 
to his work; he will take the tenth of your sheep, and you 
shall be his servants, and you shall cry out on that day on 
account of your king whom you shall have chosen for you; 
and the Lord will not hear you on that day. 

Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Sam- 
uel; and said: Nay, we will have a king over us, that we 
may be like all the other nations; and that our king may judge 
us, and go out before us, and fight our battles. 

Samuel then dismissed the people to their homes. 

I will be thy King ; where is any other that may save thee in all thy 
cities ? I gave thee a king in My anger, and took him away in My 
wrath.— Hos. 13, 10, 11. 



THE REIGN OF SAUL AND EARLY HISTORY OF DAYID. 

C. E. 1095—1056. 
88. ELECTION OF SAUL. 

(1 Sam. 9. 10.) 

There was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish^ a 
mighty man of wealth. He had a son, whose name was Saul,^ 
a young and handsome man, and there was not among the chil- 
dren of Israel a man handsomer than he: from his shoulders 
and upwards he was higher than any of the people. It so 
happened that some asses belonging to Kish had wandered 
astray and were lost, and that he said to Saul his son: Take 
now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the 
asses. The two set out; they passed through Mount Ephraim 
and several other places, without finding the animals. After 
a three days' fruitless search, Saul, beginning to fear lest his 
father's care for his lost property should be changed into 
solicitude for the safety of his son, proposed to return home, 
but his servant said: Behold now, there is in this city a man 
of God, and he is an honorable man; all that he says, comes 
surely to pass; now let us go thither; perad venture he can 
show us the way that we should go. Then Saul said to his 
servant: Well said; come, let us go. And as they went up 
the hill to"^ the city, they found young maidens going out to 
draw water, and said to them : Is the seer here? (He that 
is now called Prophet, was beforetime called Seer.) 

And they answered and said: He is; behold, he is before 



136 SAMUEL. 

you: make haste now, for lie came to-day to the city; for 
there is a sacrifice of the people to-day in the high place. So 
the two hastened up the hill, and when they had come into 
the city, behold, Samuel came out toward them, to go up to 
the high place. Now the Lord had told Samuel in his ear a 
day before Saul came, saying: To-morrow, about this time, 
I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and 
thou shalt anoint him to be captain over My people Israel, 
that he may save My people out of the hand of the Philis- 
tines; for I have looked upon My people, because their cry has 
come to Me. And when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to 
him : Behold the man of whom I spoke to thee ! this same 
shall reign over My people. Then Saul drew near to Samuel 
in the gate, and said : Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's 
house is? And Samuel answered Saul, and said: I am the 
seer; go up before me to the high place; for thou shalt eat 
with me to-day, and to-morrow I will let thee go, and will 
tell thee all that is in thy heart. And as for thy asses that 
were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them ; for they 
are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel ? Is it 
not on thee, and on all thy father's house ? "What the desire 
of the nation was at that time could not be unknown to Saul, 
and, conscious of his own insignificance, he modestly answered 
and said: Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes 
of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the 
tribe? wherefore then speakest thou so to me? And Samuel 
took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the hall 
attached to the sanctuary, and made them sit in the chief 
place among the thirty persons who were invited to the feast. 
After the feast Samuel took Saul to the top of his house, 
which being flat on the roof, was convenient for walking and 
taking the air; here he communed privately with him. 

The next morning, as Saul was leaving Ramah, Samuel 
went with him, and when they had reached the outskirts of 
the city, Samuel said to Saul: Bid the servant pass on before 
us (and he passed on), but stand thou still awhile that I may 
tell thee the word of God. Then Samuel took a vial of oil, 
and poured it upon Saul's head, and kissed^ him, saying: Be- 
hold, the Lord has anointed thee to be captain over His inher- 
itance ! Then he gave him different signs of events that would 
happen on his way home. He, moreover informed him that he 
would encounter a company of prophets and he also would 
prophesy. And it was so. At Gibcah,'^ behold, a company of 

' To kJBs, according to eastern custom, was to proffer homage and service. — 
Hos. 13,2; 1 King 19, 18. 
^ The place of Saul's abode when chosen king. 



SAMUEL. 137 

prophets met him, and the spirit of God came suddenly over 
him and he prophesied^ in the midst of them. Then the 
people said to one another: What is this that has happened to 
the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets? And this 
saying passed into a proverb. All the other signs happened 
also as Samuel had predicted. 

Meanwhile Samuel called the people together at Mizpeh, 
and said to the children of Israel: Thus saith the Lord God 
of Israel: I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered 
you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand 
of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you: And you 
have this day rejected your God, who Himself saved you out 
of all your adversities, and your tribulations; and you have 
said to Him: Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore, 
present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes, and by 
your thousands. And when Samuel had caused all the tribes 
of Israel to come near, he proceeded to elect their future 
ruler by lot. The lot fell first upon the tribe of Benjamin, 
and then upon the family of Matri, next upon the household 
of Kish, and lastly upon his son Saul. But he had modestly 
hid himself among the carts and baggage, and when he was 
found, and stood among the people, he was higher than any 
of the people from his shoulders and upward. Now Samuel 
said to all the people: See ye him whom the Lord has chosen, 
that there is none like him among all the people ? And all 
the people shouted, and said: God save the king ! Then 
Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and 
wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the Lord. Then 
Samuel sent the people away, every man to his house. Saul 
also went home to Gibeah; many good men paid him the 
respect that was due to him, but the greater part were evil 
men who despised and derided him, saying: How shall this 
man save us? But Saul held his peace. 

A man's pride shall bring him down, but the man that is of a humble 
spirit shall attain to honor. — Prov. 29, 23. 



89. SAUL'S FIRST VICTORY. 

(1 Sam. 11.) 

Nakash, the Ammonite, came up and encamped against 
Jabesh- Gilead,"^ and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash: 
Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee. On this 

1 Prophesy signifies? here praising God with instruments of music and singing, 
or speaking in a sublime manner aoout divine truths.— 1 Chron. 25, 3. 
* A town lying east of Jordan, and not far from the Sea of Galilee. 



138 SAMUEL. 

condition, he answered, will I spare you, that I may thrust 
out all your right eyes, and lay it for a reproach upon all 
Israel. And the elders of Jabesh said to him: Give us seven 
days' respite, that we may send messengers to all the coasts 
of Israel, and then, if there be no man to save us, we will 
come out to thee. Then the messengers came to Gibeah of 
Saul, and told the tidings in the ears of the people; and all 
the people lifted up their voices and wept. And behold, Saul 
came after the herd out of the field; and he said: What ail- 
eth the people that they weep? And they told him the tidings 
of the men of Jabesh. Then the spirit of God came upon 
Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled 
greatly. And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in 
pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by 
the hands of messengers, saying: "Whosoever comes not forth 
after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen. 
And the fear of the Lord fell on the people, and they came 
out with one consent. And when he numbered them, the 
children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the 
men of Judah thirty thousand. And they said to the mes- 
sengers that came: Thus shall ye say to the men of Jabesh- 
gilead: To-morrow, by the time the sun is hot, ye shall have 
help. The messengers came and told it to the men of Jabesh; 
and they were glad. Therefore the men of Jabesh said: To- 
morrow we will come out to you, and you shall do with us all 
that seems good to you. 

On the morrow, Saul put the people in three companies; 
and they came into the midst of the host in the morning- 
watch, slew the Ammonites until the heat of the day, and 
gained a complete victory. Pleased with Saul's bravery and 
success, the people now said : Who is he that said : Shall Saul 
reign over us ? bring the men, that we may put them to death. 
But Saul said : There shall not a mar; be put to death this day, 
for to-day the Lord has wrought salvation in Israel. Then 
Samuel said to the people: Come, and let us go to Gilgal,^ and 
renew the kingdom there. And all the people went to Gil- 
gal; and there they made Saul king, and sacrificed sacrifices of 
peace-offerings before the Lord; and there Saul and all the 
men of Israel rejoiced greatly. 

And Samuel said to all Israel: Behold, I have hearkened 
to your voice in all that you said to me, and have made a 
king over you. And now, behold, I am old and gray -headed; 
I have walked before you from my childhood to this day. 
Behold, here I am ; witness against me before the Lord, and 

> At the eastern extremity of the district of Jcriclio, a place convenient for tho 
inhabitants on both eides of the Jordan. 



SAMUEL. 139 

before his anointed; whose ox have I taken? or whose ass 
have 1 taken ? or whom have I defrauded ? whom have I 
oppressed ? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to 
blind my eyes therewith ? and I will restore it you. And 
they said: Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, 
neither hast thou taken ought of any man's hand. And he 
said: The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is 
witness this day, that you have not found aught in my hand. 
And they answered: He is witness. Novv^ Samuel went on, 
saying: In truth you committed a wrong to ask a king; but 
if you will fear the Lord, and serve Him, and obey His voice, 
so as not to rebel against the word of the Lord, and will be, 
both you and your king who reigns over you, followers after 
the Lord your God, then you shall be safe and happy under 
His care. But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, 
but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then shall 
the hand of the Lord be against you, as it was against your 
fathers. And do not turn aside after vain things. For the 
Lord will not forsake His people for His great name's sake: 
because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people. 
Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the 
Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the 
good and the right way: only fear the Lord, and serve Him 
in truth with all your heart: and consider what great things 
He has done for you. But if you shall still do wickedly, you 
shall be consumed, both you and your king. 

Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart. — 
1 Sam. 12, 24. 



90. SAUL AND JONATHAN DEFEAT THE PHIL- 
ISTINES. 

(1 Sam. 13, 14.) 

Saul chose him 3,000 men of Israel; whereof 2,000 were 
with him at Michmash^ and in Mount Bethel, and 1,000 with 
his son Jonatlian^ in Gibeah. Saul had now fully taken the 
reins of government. The Phihstines, perhaps aware of the 
change in the Hebrew state, and having lost the remem- 
brance of their overthrow at Mizpeh, began to make new en- 

1 MuTchmas on the northern edge of the great Wady Suweinit. 

2 Saul received his anthority first of all from the hands of Samuel by a private 
consecration to his office : afterwards by means of an appeal to the sacred lot. 
There was a third ceremonial by which the kinofdom was practically inaugurated. 
An interval of several years occurred between these successive steps. At the mo- 
ment when he first addressed himself to Samuel he was a bachur, a young (un- 
married) man, and in the third year of his actual reign, he had already a son (Jon- 
athan), who was grown to man's estate. 



140 SAMUEL. 

croachments. Their garrisons already held some of the 
heights of Israel. And Jonathan smote the Philistines that 
were in Geha} This was the signal for a general war. Saul 
blew the trumpet throughout the land, sapng: Let the He- 
brews hear, and called the people together to Gilgal. 

And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight 
with Israel a great many chariots, six thousand horsemen, 
and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude; 
and they came up and pitched in Michmash. So large an 
army terrified the Hebrews and some concealed themselves 
in caves and thick bushes among the rocks and on the moun- 
tains, and in pits in the earth, while others fled over Jordan 
into the land of Gilead, where the two and a half tribes lived. 
The few who were left, followed after Saul their king, but 
they trembled with fear. 

Saul came to Gilgal; for Samuel had promised to meet him 
there, and had commanded him to wait till he should come, 
that he might offer up burnt-offerings and peace-offerings for 
the people and ask the Lord to save them from the Philis- 
tines. And Saul tarried seven days, according to the time 
that Samuel had appointed; but Samuel came not, and the 
people were scattered from Saul. Then Saul said: Bring 
hither a burnt-offering to me, and peace-offerings. And he 
offered the burnt-offering. But as soon as he had done it, 
Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might 
salute him. But Samuel said: What hast thou done? Saul 
replied: I saw that the people were scattered from me, and 
that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the 
Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash; there- 
fore, said I, the Philistines will now come down upon me to 
Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord; I 
forced myself therefore, and offered a burnt-offering. And 
Samuel said to Saul: Thou hast done foolishly, thou hast not 
kept the commandment of the Lord thy God which He com- 
manded thee; the Lord would have established thy kingdom 
upon Israel for ever, but now thy kingdom shall not con- 
tinue: the Lord has selected for Himself a man after His 
own heart, and the Lord has appointed him to be ruler over 
His people; Samuel then went to Gibea in Benjamin. Saul 
numbered the people that were present with him, and found, 
there were about six hundred men. 

Now the Philistines had for a long time made the children 
of Israel their servants ; neither would they let the men of 
Israel have swords or spears, for fear they might rise up and 

J Tlic modem Jeba, on the south side of the Wady Suweinit, exactly opposite 
Michmash. 



SAMUEL. 141 

fight against them. They had also sent the smiths out of the 
land, lest they should make these things for the people. So 
when the day for the battle came, it was found that among 
the children of Israel no man had either a sw^ord or a spear, 
except Saul and Jonathan. 

The Philistines having their camp near to the camp of the 
children of Israel, Jonathan asked his armor-bearer to go 
with him over to the camp of the Philistines. For, he said, 
there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few. 
And his armor-bearer followed him willingly. Then Jona- 
than said: Behold, we will pass over to these men, and we 
will show ourselves to them. If they say thus to us: Tarry 
until we come to you, then we will stand still in our 
place, and will not go up to them. But if they say thus: 
Come up to us, then we will go up; for the Lord has deliv- 
ered them into our hands, and this shall be the sign to us. 
And both of them revealed themselves to the garrison of the 
Phihstines, and the Philistines said: Behold, the Hebrews 
come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves. 
And the men of the garrison said: Come up to us, and we 
will show you a thing. And Jonathan said to his armor- 
bearer: Come up after me; for the Lord has delivered them 
into the hand of Israel. And Jonathan chmbed up upon his 
hands and upon his feet, and his armor-bearer after him, and 
the Philistines feh before Jonathan; and his armor-bearer 
slew after him. At the first assault twenty men were slain: 
disorder spread in the camp ; there was trembling in the 
host, in the field, and among all the people. 

When Saul had heard by the watchmen of the commotion 
in the camp of the Philistines and learned that Jonathan and 
his armor-bearer were absent, he, with all the people that 
were with him, came to the battle. He was joined by great 
numbers, who now poured forth from their rocky caverns to 
take part in the war of deliverance.. The Philistines were 
beaten back from Michmash and hotly pursued till nightfall 
by Saul. Yet the men of Israel suffered on that day; for 
Saul had adjured the people, saying: Cursed be the man that 
eats any food until evening, that I may be avenged on my 
enemies. So none of the people tasted any food. And they 
came to a wood where honey was dropping on the ground 
from the nest in the trees, where the wild bees had made it, 
and the men were hungry, yet they were afraid to eat. But 
Jonathan who did not hear his father denounce that curse 
put forth the end of his rod and dipped it in a honey-comb, 
and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes were enlight- 
ened. Then one of the people said: Thy father straitly 
charged the people with an oath, saying: Cursed be the man 



142 SAMUEL. 

wlio eateth any food this day. Whereupon Jonathan said: 
My father has troubled the land: see, I pray you, how my 
eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this 
honey; how much more, if haply the people had eaten freely 
to-day of the spoil of their enemies which they found ? for 
had there not been now a much greater slaughter among the 
Philistines? 

Saul built an altar to the Lord, and then in his impatience 
proposed an immediate pursuit of the Philistines, but the 
priest checked his zeal and counseled him to inquire of God. 
And Saul asked counsel of God- Shall I go down after the 
Philistines ? wilt thou deliver them into the hand of Israel ? 
But He answered him not that day. And Saul said: Draw 
ye near hither all the chief of the people ; and know and see 
wherein this sin has been this day. For as the Lord lives 
who saves Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall 
surely die. But there was not a man among all the people 
that answered him. Then said he to all Israel: Be ye on one 
side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. 
And the people said to Saul: Do what seems good to thee. 
Therefore Saul said: Lord God of Israel, give a perfect lot. 
And Saul and Jonathan were taken; but the people escaped. 
And Saul said : Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son. 
And Jonathan was taken. Then Saul said to Jonathan: 
Tell me what thou hast done. And Jonathan told him, and 
said: I did but taste a little honey with the end of the rod 
that was in my hand, and lo, I must die. And Saul 
answered: God do so, and more also; for thou shalt surely 
die, Jonathan. But the people said to Saul: Shall Jonathan 
die, who has wrought this great salvation in Israel ? God 
forbid: as the Lord lives, there shall not one hair of his 
head fall to the ground; for he has wrought with God this 
day. So the people rescued Jonathan, that he died not. 

So Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against 
all his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the chil- 
dren of Ammon, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, 
against the Philistines: and withersoever he turned himself, 
he humbled them. 

Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save ; neither 
His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. — Is. 59, 1. 



91. SAUL SENT TO DESTROY THE AMALEK- 
ITES. HIS SECOND OFFENCE. 

{ 1 S^m. 15.) 

The Amalekites alone had not been attacked, therefore 



SAMUEL. 143 

Samuel said to Saul: The Lord sent me to anoint thee to be 
king over His people, over Israel: now hearken thou to the 
voice of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts: I remem- 
ber that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for 
him in the way, when he came up from Eg}^t. Now go 
and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, 
and spare them not. And Saul gathered the people together, 
and numbered them in Telaim^^ two hundred thousand foot- 
men, and ten thousand men of Judah. When he came to 
the Kenites, he said to them: depart, and get down from 
among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for 
you showed kindness to the children of Israel when they 
came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from 
among the Amalekites. Now Saul smote the Amalekites, 
took Agag their King ^ alive, and utterly destroyed all the 
people with the edge of the sword. He spared the life of 
the King and, entreated by his men, he saved also the finest 
flocks and herds, reserving them for offerings to the Lord. 

When Samuel heard that, his anger was roused. He at 
once proceeded to meet the returning King, and at break of 
day he came to him at Gilgal. When the King saw him, he 
saluted him, and said: Blessed be thou of the Lord; I have 
performed the commandment of the Lord. But Samuel 
replied: What means then this bleating of the sheep in my 
ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear ? And Saul 
said: The people have brought them from the Amalekites; 
for they spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to 
sacrifice to the Lord thy God; and the rest we have utterly 
destroyed. Then Samuel said to Saul: Stay, and I will tell 
thee what the Lord has said to me this night. And he said 
to him: Say on! And Samuel said: When thou wast little in 
thy own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of 
Israel, and the Lord anointed thee king over Israel ? And 
the Lord sent thee on a journey, and said: Go, and utterly 
destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them 
until they be consumed. Wherefore then didst thou not 
obey the voice of the Lord, but didst seize upon the spoil, 
and didst evil in the sight of the Lord ? And Saul said to 
Samuel: Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and 
have gone the way which the Lord sent me. I have utterly 
destroyed the Amalekites, I have saved alive the King alone, 
and have brought him to thee, that we may advise together 
what should be done with him; and the sheep and the oxen 
were spared by the people for no other purpose than to sac- 
rifice them to the Lord. Whereupon Samuel exclaimed: 

1 Tdaim. one of tbe uttermost cities of Judah, toward the coast of Edom, 
gouthwai'd. 

2 Comp. page 85, note 4. ' 



144 SAMUEL. 

Hath the Lord pleasure in burnt-ofFerings and sacrifices. 

As in obedience to the voice of the Lord ? 
Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, 

And to follow than the fat of rams ! 
For disobedience is the sin of heathenism, 

Disbelief is idols and devils ; 
Because thou hast rejected the Avord of the Lord, 

He hath rejected thee also as His king. 

For the second time the King acknowledged his guilt. I 
have sinned! he exclaimed; for I have transgressed the com- 
mandment of the Lord, and thy word. But, still unable to 
bring himself to unconditional confession, he attributed his 
offence to the wishes of the people: I feared the people, said 
he, and obeyed their voice ; and, thinking far more of him- 
self than of the God he had offended, he implored the 
prophet not to abandon him publicly and thereby weaken 
his authority with the people ; I pray thee, said he, pardon 
my sin, and accompany me in worshipping God. I will not 
return with thee, Samuel replied; for thou hast rejected the 
word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected thee from 
being king over Israel. And as Samuel turned about to go 
away, Saul laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it 
rent. Then Samuel exclaimed : The Lord has rent the king- 
dom of Israel from thee this day, and has given it to a 
neighbor of thine that is better than thou. Surely the 
Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for He is not a 
man, that He should repent. Saul repeated again: I have 
sinned! yet honor me now, I pray thee, before Israel, and 
turn once more with me, that I may worship the Lord thy 
God. Samuel, overcome by this renewed entreaty of the 
now thoroughly humbled monarch, joined him in his sacri- 
fice. Then Agag the King of the Amalekites was summoned 
before the prophet. Thinking that because Saul had spared 
him, all danger to his life was over, Agag presented himself 
almost joyously, promising himself that the bitterness of 
death was passed. But at once this hope was dispelled by 
Samuel's stern words: As thy sword has made women child- 
less,^ so shall thy mother be childless among women. And 
Samuel hewed Agag in pieces ^ before the Lord in Gilgal. 
Then Samuel went to Ramah, and came no more to see Saul, 
until the day of his death; for he mourned for Saul, because 
the Lord had made him King over Israel; and Saul went up 
to his house to Gibeah. 

Has the Lord pleasure in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obedience 
to the voice of the Lord? — 1 Sam. 15, 22. 

^ He had been a cruel, bloody tyrant. 

2 He ordered him to be executed on the spot. 



SAMUEL. 145 



92. ANOINTING OF DAVID. 

(1 Sam. 16.) 

The Lord said to Samuel: How long wilt thou mourn for 
Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel ? 
Fill thy horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the 
Beth-lehemite; for I have provided for Myself a king among 
his sons. How can I go ? replied Samuel, if Saul hear it, he 
will kill me. And the Lord said: Take a heifer with thee, 
and say: I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.^ And call 
Jesse to the sacrifice,^ and I will show thee what thou shalt 
do: and thou shalt anoint to Me him whom I name to thee. 
Samuel came to Beth-lehem, and the elders of the town were 
afraid at his coming,^ and they said: Comest thou peaceably ? 
And he said: Peaceably. I have come to sacrifice to the 
Lord. Sanctify yourselves * and come with me to the sacri- 
fice. And he called also Jesse, who had eight sons; of 
whom the youngest was David.^ Then he went home with 
Jesse, while the feast of the peace-offering was getting 
ready, and acquainted him with his business. 

When Jesse's sons had come and Samuel saw lEliab, the 
eldest of them, he thought: Surely the Lord's anointed is 
before him. But the Lord said to Samuel: Look not on 
his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I 
have refused him; for the Lord sees not as man sees; 

FOE MAN LOOKS ON THE OUTWARD APPEARANCE, BUT THE 

Lord looks on the heart. Then Jesse called Abinadab, 
and made him pass before Samuel. And he said : Neither 
has the Lord chosen this. Then Jesse made Shammah to 
pass by. And he said: Neither has the Lord chosen this. 
Thus Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel: 
and Samuel said to Jesse: The Lord has not chosen these. 
Are here all thy children ? There remains yet the youngest, 
and behold, he keeps the sheep, was Jesse's reply. And 
Samuel said: Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down 
till he come hither. And he sent, and brought him in. 
Now he was ruddy, and of a beautiful countenance, and 
goodly to look upon. And the Lord said to Samuel: Arise, 
anoint him; for this is he. Then Samuel took the horn of 

1 This Samuel was used to do from place to place to keep up the worship of God. 

2 To feast upon the peace-offering, as friends and neighbors used to do. 

3 Lest he was come to denounce some judgment against them; or to shun 
SauTtj displeasure, and it might be dangerous for them to entertain him. 

* By washing and other legal purifications. 
^ in (the dear one; the beloved). 



146 SAMUEL. 

oil, and anointed him.^ And the spirit of the Lord came 
upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up and 
went to Ramah. 

Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel. — Amos 4, 12. 
The refining-pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold ; but God tries 
hearts. — Prov. 17, 3. 



93. DAVID INTRODUCED TO COURT. DAYID AND 
GOLIATH. 

(1 Sam. 16, 17.) 

The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil 
spirit from the Lord troubled him.^ His servants proposed 
to find some skilful player on the harp, who, when the evil 
spirit troubled him, might soothe him with music.^ So Saul 
said : Provide for me such a man. Then one of the servants 
said: Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite 
who is skilful in playing the harp, and in singing of hymns; 
and is in other respects deserving of great regard. There- 
fore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and told him to send him 
David his son, who kept the sheep. And Jesse took an ass; 
and loaded it with bread, and a bottle * of wine, and a kid, 
and sent them by David, as a token of homage, and alle- 
giance. And David came to Saul, and stood before him. 
Saul finding him to be such a one as was represented, loved 
him greatly; and made him his armor-bearer, a post of con- 
siderable honor. When the evil spirit from God was upon 
Saul, David took a harp, and played with his hand : so Saul 
was refreshed and quieted, and the evil spirit departed from 
him. The Philistines, not very long afterwards, having 
gathered a great army, made war against the Israelites; and 
having seized a hilly place between Shochoh ^ and Azekah,^ 
they there pitched their camp. The camp of the Israelites 
was on an opposite hill, so that a valley was between them. 
And there came out of the camp of the Philistines a man, 
whose name was Goliath, of the City of Gath, of great size; 
for he was six cubits and a space (11 feet) in height; his 
weapons also were suited to his stature. He had a helmet 

' Probably Samuel explained the meaning of this ceremony to be an appoint- 
ment to the Kingdom after Saul's death, but not till then. 

2 He grew melancholy, had violent fits of frenzy, and strange agitations of body 
and mind. 

3 Music is known to have a natural tendency to assuage the passions and com- 
pose the mind, and was celebrated for this among the ancieuls. 

4 Large leathern bottles are still used in the East. 

^In the shephelah or m&vitime pl&hi, S/iochoh, now Shuweikeh, nine miles ft'om 
Eleutheropolis. 



SAMUEL. 147 

of brass upon his head; and lie was clothed with a coat of 
mail; its weight was five thousand shekels of brass.^ He 
had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass be- 
tween his shoulders. And the stall of his spear was like a 
weaver's beam; his spear's head weighed six hundred shek- 
els of iron, 2 and a man bearing a shield went before him. 
This Gohath stood between the two armies as they were in 
battle array and spoke with a loud voice, and said to the Is- 
raelites: Why have you come out to set your battle in array ? 
Am not I a Philistine, and you servants to Saul ? Choose 
a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be 
able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your 
servants; but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then 
shall you be our servants, and serve us. I defy the armies 
of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight to- 
gether, and by single combat decide the day. When Saul 
and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were 
dismayed, and greatly afraid. This Philistine drew near 
morning and evening, and presented himself forty days. 

Now while this war between the Israelites and the Philis- 
tines was going on, and Saul was in the camp, David had 
returned home, to feed his father's sheep at Beth-lehem. But 
the three eldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle. 
One day Jesse said to David: Take now for thy brothers an 
ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and run to 
the camp. And carry these ten cheeses to the captain of 
their thousand and see how thy brothers fare, and bring a 
token that they are alive and well. David rose up early in 
the morning, left the sheep with a keeper, and went; and as 
he came to the place of the baggage the host was going forth 
to the fight, and shouted for the battle. David left the pro- 
visions he had brought in the hand of the keeper of the bag- 
gage, and ran into the army, and saluted his brothers. And 
as he talked with them, behold, the champion, Goliath, came 
out of the armies of the Philistines and challenged the Israe- 
lites as before. And all the men of Israel, when they saw 
the man, fled from him, and were afraid. And David heard 
the Israelites say, that if any man would kiU. this Philistine 
the king would enrich him with great riches and give him his 
daughter in marriage and make his father's house free from 
all taxes and customs. Then David inquired further about 
the giant and said: Who is this Philistine, that he should 
defy the armies of the living God. And Eliab his eldest 
brother heard when he spoke to the men, and his anger was 
kindled against David, and he said: Why camest thou down 

1 About 150 pounds. ^ About twenty-five pounds. 



148 SAMUEL. 

hither ? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the 
wilderness ? I know thy presumption and the wickedness of 
thy heart; for thou hast come down that thou mightest see the 
battle. And David said : What have I now done ? Is there 
not a cause ? ^ He turned from him toward another, and 
spoke after the same manner; and his words were rehearsed 
before §aul, who sent' for him. Now David said to Saul: 
Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go 
and fight with this Philistine. Whereupon Saul answered: 
Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with 
him ; for thou art but a boy, and he a man of war from his 
youth. But David replied: Thy servant kept his father's 
sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb 
out of the flock; and I went out after him and smote him, 
and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against 
me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. 
Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear; and this un- 
clean Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he has defied 
the armies of the living God. And David said moreover : The 
Lord, who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out 
of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of 
this unclean Philistine. And when Saul found him to be a 
man of so much courage, resolution, and faith, he said to 
David: Go, and the Lord be with thee. And Saul armed 
David with his own armor; he put a helmet of brass upon 
his head, clothed him with a coat of mail. David girded his 
sword upon his armor, and attempted to go, but he had not 
tried the armor before. I cannot go with these, he said to 
the king; for I have not proved them. So he took them off. 
Then he took his staff in one hand, chose five smooth stones 
out of the brook and put them into his shepherd's bag or 
scrip; took his sling in the other hand, and thus armed drew 
near to the Philistine. 

The Philistine marched forward, and his armor-bearer was 
before him, bearing his shield. Now when the Philistine 
looked about, and saw David, he disdained him; for he was 
but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. And he 
said to David: Am I a dog, that thou comest to me witli 
staves ? and he cursed David by his gods, and said : Come to 
me, and I will give thy flesh to the fowls of the air, and to 
the beasts of the field. Then said David to the Philistine: 
Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and witli 
a shield : but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, 
the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This 

' Had I not renpon enous:h for cominjj here, when my father Bent mc, and for 
making this inquiry, wheulsrael's army and God are defied ? 




Musical Instruments (p. 76). 




Ancient Cuirass or Armor (p. 148). 

I,evy Type Photo-Eng. Co., Baltirnore. 



SAMUEL. 149 

day will the Lord deliver tliee into my hand: and I will 
smite thee, and take thy head from thee; and I will give the 
carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day to the fowls 
of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the 
earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this 
assembly' shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword 
and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give you 
into our hands. When the Philistine arose, and drew nigh 
to meet David, David hastened, ran towards the army to meet 
the Philistine, and he put his hand in his bag, took out a 
stone, slung it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that 
the stone sunk into his head; and he fell upon his face to the 
earth. Then David ran and stood upon the Philistine, took 
his sword, drew it out of the sheath thereof, slew him, 
and cut ofi his head therewith. And when the Philistines 
saw their champion was dead, they fled. The men of Israel 
and of Judah arose and shouted, and pursued the Philistines 
to the gates of Ekron, and the wounded of the PhiHstines 
fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even to Gath, and to 
Ekron. 

Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield ; 
hut I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies 
of Israel. — 1 Sam. 17, 45. 

All the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. — 1 Sam. 17, 46. 

He who is sIoav to anger is better than the mighty ; and he who rules 
his spirit, than he who takes a city. — ^Prov. 16, 32. 

94. SAUL'S ENVY. HIS ATTEMPTS TO DESTROY 
DAYID. 

(1 Sam. 18.) 

After this victory Jonathan and David made a covenant,^ 
because Jonathan loved David as his own soul. And it 
came to pass when they returned from the slaughter of the 
Philistine, that the women came out of all the cities of Israel, 
singing and dancing to meet king Saul, with joy, and having 
instruments of music. They played and sang to one another: 

Saul has slain his thousands 
And David his ten thousands. 

"When Saul heard this he was very vfroth and the saying 
displeased him; and he exclaimed: They have ascribed to 
David ten thousands, and to me but thousands; and what 
can he have more but the Kingdom ? ^ Saul eyed David 

1 They Bolemnly entered into a league of perpetual friendship, which extended 
to themselves and their posterity. 

2 He now suspected that David was the person whom Samuel referred to as his 
successor. 



150 SAMUEL. 

from that day forward. On the morrow, when the evil spirit 
from God was come upon Saul, and he raved in the midst of 
the house, and David played before him as at other times, Saul 
cast his javelin at him meaning to thrust him through, even so 
as to fasten him to the wall. David happily eluded the thrust of 
the weapon twice, and hastened out of the King's presence. 
Saul was now afraid of David, because the Lord was with 
him, and had departed from Saul. Therefore Saul removed 
him from him, and made him captain over a thousand. 
David went out and came in before the people, and behaved 
himself wisely and had success in all his ways, for God was 
with him. Therefore when Saul saw that, he said to 
David: Behold, my elder daughter Merab, her will I give 
thee to wife: only be thou valiant for me, and fight the 
Lord's battles. For Saul thought: Let not my hand, but let 
the hand of the Philistines be upon him. But David said: 
Who am I ? and what is my life, or my father's family in 
Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king ? But at the 
time when Merab should have been given to David, she was 
married to Adriel the Meholathite. After that, Saul's 
younger daughter, Michal, loved David: and they told Saul 
of it, and the thing pleased him, for he thought : She may be 
a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines may be 
against him. Therefore Saul said to his servants: Thus shall 
you say to David: The king desires not any dowry, but a 
hundred slain Philistines, to be avenged of his enemies. 
And when his servants told David these words, it pleased 
him well, and he arose and went, he and his men, and slew 
of the Philistines two hundred men. Now Saul gave him 
Michal, his daughter, to wife. And when Saul saw and 
knew that the Lord was with David and that Michal his daugh- 
ter, loved him, he spoke to Jonathan his son, and to all his 
servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan de- 
lighted much in David and like a true friend pleaded in his 
behalf, and said to his father: Let not the King sin against 
his servant, against David, because he has not sinned against 
thee, and because his actions to thee have been very good. 
And Saul hearkened to the voice of Jonathan and swore: 
As the Lord lives, he shall not be slain. So David was per- 
mitted to go into Saul's presence as in times past. 

Soon after this there was war again, and David went out 
and fought with the Philistines and triumphed gloriously 
over them, so that Saul was again jealous of him and his 
evil spirit returned, and once when David as before played 
his harp, Saul flung his javeHn furiously at him and sought to 
kill him. David fled to his house, but Saul sent messengers 



SAMUEL. 151 

thitlier, to watcli him, and to slay Mm in the morning. But 
Michal let him down through a window, so that he escaped 
safely. Then she took an image, and laid it in the bed, and 
put a pillow of goat's hair for his bolster, and covered it with 
a cloth. Now when Saul sent messengers to take David, she 
said: He is sick. And Saul sent the messengers again to 
see David, saying: Bring him up to me in the bed, that I 
may slay him. When the messengers had come in, behold, 
there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goat's hair 
for his bplster. And Saul said to Michal: "Why hast thou 
deceived me so, and sent away my enemy, that he has 
escaped? And Michal answered Saul: He said to me: Let 
me go; why should I kill thee? In the mean time David 
fled, and came to Ramah, to Samuel, who Jodged him in the 
house of the prophets. When Saul heard of it, he sent 
thither messengers to take David: but when they saw the 
company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing 
as appointed over them, the Spirit of God was upon the mes- 
sengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. And when it 
was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they prophesied 
likewise. And Saul sent messengers agam the third time,, 
and they prophesied also. Then he himself went to Ramah, 
and the spirit of God was upon him also, and he went on 
and prophesied. Therefore they say: Is Saul also among 
the prophets ? 

Put not thyself forth in the presence of the King, nor station thyself in 
the place of great men. — Prov7"25, 6. 

For jealousy is the fury of a man ; he will not spare in the day of ven- 
geance. — Prov. 6, 34. 



95. DAYID AND JONATHAN AFFECTIONATELY 
PART FROM EACH OTHii^R. 

(1 Sam. 20.) 

While Saul was at Ramah, David escaped to Jonathan his 
faithful friend, and said to him : What have I done ? what is 
my iniquity ? and what is my sin before thy father, that he 
seeks my life ? And Jonathan answered: God forbid; thou 
shalt not die: behold, my father will do nothing, either great 
or small, without first telling me of it, and why should my 
father hide this thing from me ? it is not so.^ But David 
said: Thy father certainly knows that I have found grace in 
thy eyes; and he thought: Let not Jonathan know this, lest 
he be grieved: but truly as the Lord lives and as thy soul 

1 Jonathan trusted too much to Saul's oath, or supposed he would be better 
when his frantic fit was over. 



152 SAMUEL. 



lives there is but a step between me and death. Then said 
Jonathan to David: Whatsoever thy soul desires, I will do it 
for thee. David replied: Behold, to-morrow is the new 
moon ^ and I should not fail to sit down then with the King 
and eat of the feast; if it seem good to thee, I will go out 
of the city and conceal myself in the field, and if thy father 
inquire, why I am absent, tell him, I am gone to Beth-lehem, 
for there is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family.-^ If 
he say thus: It is well; thy servant shall have peace: but if 
he be very wroth, then be sure that evil is determined by 
him. 

And Jonathan said to David : Come, and let us go out into 
the field. They went out and Jonathan bade David hide 
himself there by the stone Ezel. If it please my father to 
do thee evil, said Jonathan, then I will let thee know and 
send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace. The two 
friends renewed their vows of attachment; and Jonathan 
made a covenant with David, saying: Let the Lord even 
require it at the hand of David's enemies. . . . And as 
regards the matter of which thou and I have spoken, behold, 
the Lord be between thee and me for ever. And now Jona- 
than bade David hide himself and remain by the stone Ezel. 
After the feast, said he, I will come out, and will shoot three 
arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark ; and 
behold, I will send a lad, saying: Go, find out the arrows. 
If I say: Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take 
them; then come thou; for there is peace to thee, and no 
hurt; as the Lord lives. But if I say thus to the young 
man : Behold, the arrows are beyond thee ; , go thy way : for 
the Lord has sent theo away. 

So David hid himself in the field: and when the new-moon 
had come, the king sat down to eat as at other times, upon a 
seat by the wall. Abner sat by Saul's side, and David's place 
was empty. Nevertheless Saul spoke not anything that day: 
But on the morrow, which was the second day of the month, 
when David's place was empty likewise, Saul said to Jona- 
than his son. Why did the son of Jesse not come to eat, 
neither yesterday nor to-day ? Jonathan answered : David 
asked leave of me to go to Bethlehem, for his family has a 
sacrifice, and his brothers bade him be there. Then Saul's 
anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said: Thou son 
of the perverse rebellious woman, do not I know that thou 

» There was a solemn sacrifice every new moon : this was kept for two days ; 
because the moon sometimes appeared in the evening and sometimes in the morn- 
ing. They feasted on what was left. 

a It was the custom of pious families to assemble at a yearly pacriflce, to 
Btrengthen their mutual affection, and joiu in thankfulness to God for common 
mercies. 



1 



Mzmi^ 




Egyptian Quiver and Bow (p. 25). 




Ancient Arms (p. 153). 

Lfry Tppx Photo-Eng. Co., Baltimore. 



SAMUEL. 153 

hast chosen the son of Jesse to thy own confusion, and to thy 
mother's shame ? For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon 
the ground, thou shalt not be estabHshed, nor thy kingdom. 
Therefore now send and fetch him to me, for he shall surely 
die. And Jonathan answered: Wherefore shall he be slain ? 
what has he done ? But Saul cast a javelin at him to smite 
him: wh«reby Jonathan knew that it w^as determined of his 
father to slay David. Then Jonathan rose from the table in 
fierce anger. In the morning he went out into the field at 
the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him. 
And he said to his lad: Eun, find out now the arrows which 
1 shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him, 
and cried after the lad, and said: Is not the arrow beyond 
thee ? The lad gathered up the arrows, and was then sent 
back to the city. Now David arose out of the place where 
he was hidden, and bowed down with his face to the ground 
three times. Then they kissed one another, and wept with 
one another. At length Jonathan spoke: Go in peace, said 
he, and it remains as we have sworn both of us in the name 
of the Lord, saying: The Lord be between me and thee, and 
between my seed and thy seed for ever. Then David arose 
and departed: and Jonathan went into the city. 

Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man thou 
shalt not go ; lest thou learn his ways ; and get a snare to thy soul. — 
Prov. 22, 24, 25. 

A friend loves at all times ; but in adversity he is born a brother. — 
Prov. 17, 17. 



96. DAVID FLIES TO NOB AND TO GATH. 

(1 Sam. 21.) 

Then David came to Nob ^ to AKimelech the priest, who, 
when he saw him coming all alone, and neither friend nor a 
servant with him, wondered at it ; and he said to David: 
Why art thou alone, and no man with thee ? David replied: 
The king has commanded me to do a certain thing that was 
to be kept secret; however I have ordered my servants to 
meet me at such and such a place. Then he asked Ahime- 
lech for some bread. The priest gave him some hallowed 
bread which had been removed from the Show-bread table; 
for there was no other there. Then David said to Ahime- 
lech: And is there not here under thy hand a spear or 
sword ? for 1 have neither brought my sword nor my wea- 
pons with me, because the king's business required haste. 

1 Nob, at that time a holy place, distinguished by the common sanctuary and a 
numerous priesthood. 



154 SAMUEL. 

And the priest said : The sword of Goliath, the Philistine, 
whom thou slewest in the valley of Eiah, behold, it is here, 
wrapped in a cloth, behind the ephod : if thou wilt take that, 
take it; for there is no other save that here. And David 
said: There is none hke that; give it me. Now all that Da- 
vid had done in Nob was noticed by Doeg^ the Edomite, who 
was chief of Saul's herdmen, and happened to be at the Tab- 
ernacle when Ahimelech and David were there. David 
arose, and fled to Gath, a city of the Philistines.^ The king 
of that city was called Achish. When his servants saw Da- 
vid, they knew him and said to the king: Is not this David 
the king of the land ? did they not sing one to another of 
him in dances, saying: Saul has slain his thousands, and Da- 
vid 'his ten thousands ? And David heard these words and 
was sore afraid, and so he pretended to be insane and scrab- 
bled on the doors, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.^ 
Then Achish said to his servants: Lo, you see the man 
is mad: wherefore then have you brought him to me ? Have 
I need of mad-men, that you have brought this fellow to play 
the mad-man in my presence ? Thus David escaped thence 
and fled to the cave of AduUum; and when his brothers and 
all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to him. 
And every one that was in distress, every one that was in 
debt, every one that was discontented, gathered themselves 
to him; and he became a captain over them; and there were 
with him about four hundred men. But David's father and 
his mother were old, and he wished them to be in a better 
place than the cave where he was hidden, yet he would not 
send them back to their home in Bethlehem, lest Saul might 
do them harm. Therefore he went thence to Mizpeh of 
Moab: and he said to the king of Moab: Let my father and 
my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I 
know what God will do for me. Then David departed and 
came into the forest of Hareth. Now when Saul learned by 
Doeg that David had been favored by Ahimelech, the son of 
Ahitub, he sent for him and all the priests that were in Nob, 
and tbey came all of them to the king. And Saul said: 
Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. And he answered : Here I 
am, my lord. And Saul said to him: "Why hast thou con- 
spired against me and received the son of Jesse, and hast be- 
stowed on him both food and weapons and hast inquired of 
God for him ? Thou couldst not be unaware that he had 

1 lie hopod the Philistines would receive him as an enemy of Saul. Outlaws of 
a nation have generally been sheltered by their enemies. 

'•'This pretence was the more casilj^ believed, as they would scarce suppose a 
man in his senses would come there with Goliath's sword, and after having done 
the Philistines eo much mischief. 



SAMUEL. 155 

fled away from me and was contriving to get tlie kingdom. 
Then Ahimelecli answered the king, and said: Who is so 
faithful among all thy servants as David, who is the king's 
son-in-law, and goes at thy bidding, and is honorable in thy 
house ? Did I then begin to inquire of God for him ? be it 
far from me. Let not the king impute anything to his ser- 
vant, nor to all the house of my father; for thy servant 
knew nothing of all this, less or more. And the king said: 
Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's 
house. Then the king said to the footmen that stood about 
him: Turn, and slay the priests of the Lord; because their 
hand also is with David, and because they knew when he 
fled, and did not show it to me. But the servants of the 
king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests 
of the Lord. Now the king said to Doeg: Turn thou, and 
fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and 
slew on that day eighty-five persons that wore a linen ephod. 
Abiathar, Ahimelech's son, alone escaped, and fled to David, 
and told him what Saul had done. David said: I knew 
when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell 
Saul. I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy 
father's house. Abide thou with me, fear not: for he that 
seeks my life seeks thy hfe ; but with me thou shalt be in 
safeguard. After this, they told David: Behold, the Philis- 
tines fight against Keilah, and they rob the people of their 
grain. Then David inquired of the Lord, saying: Shall I go 
and smite these Philistines ? The Lord answered: Go, and 
save Keilah; for I will deliver the Philistines into thy hand. 
So David and his men went and fought with the Philistines, 
and smote them with a great slaughter. So David saved the 
inhabitants of Keilah. But David knew that Saul secretly 
practised mischief against him; and he said to Abiathar the 
priest: Bring hither the ephod. Then David said: Lord 
God of Israel, thy servant has heard for truth that Saul seeks 
to come to Keilah, to destroy the city for my sake. "Will the 
men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand ? will Saul come 
down, as thy servant has heard ? Lord God of Israel, I 
beseech thee, tell thy servant. And the Lord said: He wiU 
come down. Then David said: Will the men of Keilah de- 
liver me and my men into the hand of Saul ? And the Lord 
said: They will dehver thee up. Then David and his men, 
which were about six hundred, arose and departed out of 
Keflah, and went whithersoever they could go. When Saul 
heard he had fled, he f orbare to go after him to Keilah. And 
David abode in the wilderness in strong holds, and remained 
in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph; and Saul sought 
him every day, but God dehvered him not into his hand. 



156 SAMUEL. 

Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous, but who is able to stand 
before envy 1 — Frov. 27, 4. 
^ Remove from me falsehood and lies ; give me neither poverty nor 
riches ; feed me with the food which is needful for me. Lest I be full, and 
deny Thee, and say : Who is the Lord 1 Or lest I be poor, and steal, and 
swear falsely by the name of my God. — Prov. 30, 8, 9. 



97. DAYID SPARES SAUL'S LIFE. 

(1 Sam. 23, 24.) 

"While David was in the wilderness of Ziph, Jonathan came 
to see him, and strengthened his hand in God; and they two 
confirmed anew their covenant of friendship. But the Ziph- 
ites came up to Saul to Gibeah and said: Behold, David 
hides himself with us in strongholds in the wood, in the hill 
of Hachilah. Now, king, come down, according to all the 
desire of thy soul, and our part shall be to deliver him into 
the king's hand. And Saul said: Blessed be you of the 
Lord: for you have compassion on me. Go, I pray you, see 
and know, where his haunt is, and who has seen him there; 
for it is told me that he deals subtilely. Take knowledge of 
all the lurking-places where he hides himself, and come ye 
again to me with the certainty, and I will go with you; and 
if he be in the land, I will search him out throughout all the 
thousands of Judah. And they arose, and went to Ziph be- 
fore Saul; but when David heard of Saul's approach he 
sought safety in the more distant wilderness of Maon. But 
Saul pursued and discovered him ; and Saul went on this side 
of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the 
mountain: and just when David was anxious to get away for 
fear of Saul, for Saul would surely have enclosed him and all 
his men, a messenger came to Saul, saying: Make haste and 
come; for the Philistines have invaded the land. There- 
fore Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went 
against the Philistines. Now David went up from thence, 
and dwelt in strongholds at En-gedi. 

"When Saul had returned from following the Philistines 
who had invaded his land, it was told him, where David had 
gone. Then he took three thousand chosen men and went 
to seek David upon the rocks of the wild goats. He came 
to the sheep-cotes * by the way, and entered a cave to take 
some rest. Now David and his men were hidden in the 
sides of the same cave,'-* but Saul could not see them. Now 
David's men said to him : Behold, the day of which the Lord 

> Sheep-cotes were places for the sheep to be led into at noon, to shelter them 
from the heat. 

2 There are caves in that part which, though very dark, are yet roomy enough to 
hold mauy thousand men. 



d 



SAMUEL. 157 

said to thee: I will deliver thy enemy into thy hand, that 
thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good to thee. Then 
David arose, and cut ofi the skirt of Saul's robe privily. 
Bat he was afterwards vexed with himself for doing even 
this,' and he said to his men: The Lord forbid that I should 
do this thing to my master, the Lord's anointed, to stretch 
forth my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the 
Lord. So David stayed his servants with these words, and 
suffered them not to rise against Saul. But when Saul rose 
up out of the cave, and went on his way, David followed 
after him and cried aloud saying: My lord the king. And Saul 
looked around to see who it was. Then Da\dd bowed dov\m 
with his face to the earth before him, and said : Wherefore 
hearest thou men's words, saying: Behold, David seeks thy 
hurt ? Behold, this day thy eyes have seen, how the Lord 
had delivered thee into my hand in the cave : and some bade 
me kill thee ; but my eye spared thee ; and I said : I will not 
put forth my hand against my lord; for he is the Lord's 
anointed. Moreover, my father, see; yea, see the skirt of 
thy robe in my hand; for in that I cut off the skirt of thy 
robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is 
neither evil nor transgression in my hand, and I have not 
sinned against thee; yet thou hunt est my life to take it. 
The Lord judge between me and thee, and avenge me of 
thee; but my hand shall not be upon thee. As says the 
proverb of the ancients: Wickedness proceeds from the 
wicked: but my hand shall not be upon thee. And after 
whom has the king of Israel come out ? after whom dost thou 
pursue ? after a dead dog, after a flea. The Lord therefore 
be Judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and plead 
my cause, and deliver me out of thy hand. When David 
had made an end of speaking these words, Saul said: Is this 
thy voice, my son David ? And Saul lifted up his voice and 
wept, and said to David: Thou art more righteous than I: 
for thou hast done good to me, but I have done evil to thee ; 
and thou hast shown me kindness this day, because when I 
was in thy power, thou didst not kill me. May the Lord 
reward thee for the good thou hast done. And now behold, 
I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the 
kingdom of Israel shall be established in thy hand: swear 
now therefore to me by the Lord, that thou wilt not cut off 
my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name 
oat of my father's house. And David swore that he would 
not. Then Saul went to his own home, but David and his 
men stayed out in the wilderness. 



* As it had the appearance of injury and indignity to the Lord's anointed. 



158 SAMUEL. 

About this time Samuel died/ and all the Israelites 
gathered together to mourn for him and buried him in his 
own city of Ramah. 

If thine enemy be hungry, feed him ; if he he thirsty, give him drink ; for 
thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and God will rewai'd thee. — 
Prov. 25, 21. 22. 



98. NABAL'S CHURLISHNESS. 

(1 Sam. 25.) 

David arose and went down to the wilderness of Paran. 
And there was a rich man who lived in Maon, a city of the 
tribe of Judah, and who had great possessions in CarmeU 
The name of this man was Nabal, and of his wife Abigail; 
she was a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful 
countenance; but the man was ill-natured and foolish, and 
did what was evil. Now when David heard in the wilder- 
ness that Nabal was shearing his sheep at Carmel, he sent 
out ten young men, and said to them: Go up to Carmel and 
greet Nabal in my name, and say to him: Long mayst thou 
live; peace be both fco thee and to thy house, and to all that 
thou hast. I have heard that thou hast shearers : now, thy 
shepherds who were with us, we hurt them not, neither was 
there aught missing to them, all the while they were in Car- 
mel. Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee : therefore 
let the young men find favor in thy eyes (for we come in a 
good day) ; give, I pray thee, whatsoever comes to thy hand 
to thy servants, and to thy son Da\T.d. 

And Nabal answered David's servants, and said: "Who is 
David ? and who is the son of Jesse ? There are plenty of 
servants now-a-days that run away from their masters, as he 
has done. Shall I take my bread, and my water, and the 
meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men 
whom I know not whence they are ? So David's young men 
came back to him, and told him all that Nabal had spoken. 
Then David said to his men: Gird on every man his sword, 
and David also girded on his sword: and there went up after 
David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by 
the stuff. 

But one of Nabal's young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, 
saying: Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness 
to salute our master, but he railed on them: yet David's men 
were very good to us, we were not harmed by them ; neither 



1 Being nearly a hundred years old. 

a Another city of Judah, which stood upon a mountain of the eame name. 



SAMUEL. 159 

missed we anything; they were a wall to us both hy day 
and night, all the time we were near them keeping the sheep. 
Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for 
evil is determined against our master, and against all his 
household. 

Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves of 
bread, and two bottles of wine; five sheep ready dressed, 
five measures of parched corn; one hundred bunches of 
raisins, two hundred cakes of figs, and put them upon asses. 
And she said to her servants: Go on before me; I will come 
after you. But she did not tell her husband Nabal. As she 
was descending a hill, she was met by David who was coming 
against Nabal with four hundred men. "When the woman 
saw David, she leaped down from her ass, fell on her face, 
bowed down to the ground, and said : Upon me, my lord, upon 
me let this iniquity be! Let thy hand-maid, I pray thee, 
speak in thy audience, and hear the words of thy handmaid. 
Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless man, 
Nabal; for as his name is, so is he;^ Nabal is his name, and 
folly is with him ; but thy handmaid, had- not seen the young 
men of my lord, w^hom thou didst send. And now this 
blessing which thy handmaid has brought to my lord, let it 
be given to the young men that follow my lord. I pray 
thee, fo:give the trespass of thy handmaid; the Lord will 
certainly make thee a sure house; because my lord fights 
the battles of the Lord, and evil has not been found in thee 
all thy days. And if a man rise to pursue thee, and to seek 
thy soul: the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle 
of life with the Lord thy God ; and the souls of thy enemies, 
them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling. 
And when the Lord shall have done to my lord according to 
all the good that He has spoken concerning thee, and shall 
have appointed thee ruler over Israel; this shall be no grief 
to thee, nor offence of heart to my lord, either that thou 
hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord has avenged him- 
self. Surely the Lord will deal well with my lord, and then 
thou mayst remember thy handmaid. 

Then David said to Abigail: Blessed be the Lord God of 
Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me: and blessed be 
thy advice, and blessed be thou, who hast kept me this day 
from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with 
my own hand. For in very deed, as the Lord God of Israel 
liveth, who has kept me back from hurting thee, except thou 
hadst hastened and come to meet me, surely there had no 
one been left that belongs to Nabal by the morning. So David 

— - 



160 SAMUEL. 

received of her hand that which she had brought him, and 
said to her: Go up in peace to thy house: see, I have heark- 
ened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person. "When 
Abigail came to her home, Nabal was holding a feast like 
the feast of a king, and was very drunken. Therefore she 
told him nothing until the morning. But in the morning, 
when the wine was gone out of Nabal, his wife told him 
these things. His heart died within him, and he became as 
a stone. About ten days after, the Lord smote Nabal, that 
he died. 

When David heard that Nabal was dead, he sent and com- 
muned with Abigail, to take her to him to be his wife. And 
Abigail hastened, and rode upon an ass, and five of her hand- 
maidens went with her; and she followed after the messen- 
gers of David, and became his wife. 

Who can find a virtuous woman 1 Her wortli is far above pearls. — 
Prov. 31, 10. 



99. DAVID IN SAUL'S CAMP. 

(1 Sam. 26.) 

The Ziphites came again to Saul to Gibeah, saying: Be- 
hold, David hides himself in the hill of Hachilah, in front of 
the wilderness. Then Saul went down and took three thou- 
sand chosen men with him, to seek David in the wilderness 
of Ziph. Now Saul pitched in the hill of Hachilah, but Da- 
vid abode in the wilderness. And David heard of it and 
sent out spies to watch for him, and they brought back word 
that Saul had come indeed. Then David arose, and came to 
the place where Saul had pitched, and where Saul lay, and 
Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host. Saul lay in 
the trench, and the people pitched round about him. Then 
David said to AMmelech, the Hittite, and to Ahishai, the son 
of Zeruiah,^ brother to Joah: Who will go down with me to 
Saul to the camp ? And Abishai said: I will go down with 
thee. So David and Abishai came to the people by night: 
and behold, Saul was asleep, and the armed men, with Abner, 
their commander, lay round about him in a circle. Then 
Abishai said to David: God has delivered thy enemy into 
thy hand this day: Let me strike, I pray thee, the spear 
through his body into the ground, I shall not have to do it a 
second time. But David answered: Destroy him not; for 
who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's anointed, 
and be guiltless? David said furthermore: As the Lord 
lives, the Lord shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; 

1 Who was David's sister.— 1 Chron. 2, 16. 



SAMUEL. IGl 

or lie shall descend into battle, and perish. The Lord for- 
bid that I should stretch forth my hand against him; but, I 
pray thee, take the spear that is at his bolster, and the cruse 
of water, and let us go. So they took the spear and the 
cruse of water from Saul's bolster ; and left him, and no man 
saw them, or knew of it, for they were asleep; because a 
deep sleep from the Lord had fallen upon Saul and all his 
men. Then David went over to the other side and stood on 
the top of a hill afar off, a great space being between them, 
and he cried to Saul's men and to Abner, saying: Answerest 
thou not, Abner ? And Abner awoke out of his sleep, and 
said : Who art thou that criest to the king ? And David 
said : Art not thou a valiant man ? and who is like to thee in 
Israel ? Wherefore then hast thou not kept better watch 
over the king, thy master ? for there came one of the people 
to destroy the king thy lord. This thing is not good that 
thou hast done. As the Lord lives you are worthy to die, 
because you have taken so little care of your master, the 
Lord's anointed. And now see where the king's spear is, 
and the cruse of water that was at his bolster. When Saul 
knew David's voice, he said: Is this thy voice, my son Da- 
vid ? and David said: It is my voice, my lord, king. 
Wherefore does my lord thus pursue after his servant ? for 
what have I done ? or what evil is in my hand ? Then said 
Saul: I have sinned: return, m.y son David; for I will no 
more do thee harm, because my soul was precious in thy 
eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred 
exceedingly. And David answered and said: Behold the 
king's spear ! and let one of the young men come over and 
fetch it. The Lord render to every man his righteousness 
and his faithfulness; for the Lord delivered thee into my 
hand to-day, but I would not stretch forth my hand against 
the Lord's anointed. And behold, as thy life was highly 
valued this day in my eyes, so let my life be highly valued in 
the eyes of the Lord, and let Him deliver me out of all trib- 
ulation. Then Saul said to David: Blessed be thou, my son 
David: thou shalt both do great things, and shalt prevail. 
So David went on his way, and Saul returned to his place. 

As a dog returns to that which he has vomited, so a fool repeats his 
folly.— Pro V, 26, 11. 

100. DAYID GOES TO ACHISH. SAUL AND THE 
WITCH OF ENDOR. 

(1 Sam. 27. 28.) 

As there was no reliance to be placed upon Saul's word, 



162 SAMUEL. 

David said to himself: I shall fall into the hand of Saul one 
day. There is nothing better for me to do than to leave the 
territory of Judah and flee into the land of the Philistines; 
then Saul will give up looking for me, so I shall escape out 
of his hand. So David arose ^ and went with his six hun- 
dred men to Achish, the king of Gath. The king received 
both him and his men kindly, being, no doubt, glad to get 
such a force of bold men from the side of king Saul, and al- 
lowed them to dwell in Gath. David had with him also his 
two wives, Ahinoam and Abigail. When Saul heard this, 
he sought no more for him, for it was of no use. David, in 
all probability, now thought that the lords of the Philistines 
would be jealous of him if he continued in their royal city, 
so he asked Achish to appoint him a dwelling somewhere 
else. Achish did so very readily, and gave him the city of 
Ziklag ^ to dwell in, and he remained there a full year and 
four months. During this time David attacked the Geshur- 
ites, and the Gezrites, and the Amalekites.3 And when 
Achish asked: Whither have you made a raid to-day? Da- 
vid said: Against the south of Judah, and against the south 
of the Jerahmeelites, and against the south of the Kenites. 
And Achish believed David, saying: He has made his people 
Israel utterly to abhor him ; therefore he shall be my servant 
for ever. 

Now in those days the Philistines gathered their armies 
together for warfare to fight with Israel; and Achish said 
to David: Know thou assuredly, that thou shalt go out 
with me to battle, thou and thy men. And David said to 
Achish: Surely thou shalt know what thy servant can do. 
Achish replied: Therefore will I make thee keeper of my 
head for ever. And the Philistines came and pitched in 
Shunem ; and Saul, and all Israel together, pitched in Gilboa. 
When Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, 
and his heart greatly trembled. He inquired of the Lord, 
but the Lord answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by 
Urim,^ nor by prophets. Then said Saul to his servants: 
Seek me a woman that has a familiar spirit,^ that I may go to 
her, and inquire of her. And his servants said to him: Be- 
hold, there is a woman that has a familiar spirit at En-dor. 
Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and went, 
and two men with him, and they came to the woman by 
night; and he said: I pray thee, divine to me by the familiar 

'After cousultins: his friends; as Josephus tell us. 
2 Ziklag was in the South Country, about twelve miles from Gath, 
'These were the remains of the nations that were devoted to destnictlon. Saul 
had not slain all the Amalekites though he was commanded to do go. 

* Which may have meant by casting lots in the presence of the priest. 

* A demon or evil spirit supposed to attend at a call. 



SAMUEL. 163 

spirit, and bring him np whom I shall name to thee. And 
the woman said: Behold, thou knowest what Saul has done, 
how he has cut off those that have familiar spirits, and the 
wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a snare 
for my life, to cause me to die ? But Saul swore to her by 
the Lord, saying: As the Lord lives, there shall no punish- 
ment happen to thee for this thing. Then said the woman: 
Whom shall I bring up to thee ? And he said : Bring me 
up Samuel. And the woman saw Samuel,^ and cried with a 
loud voice: and the woman spoke to Saul, saying: Why hast 
thou deceived me ? for thou art Saul.^ And the king said to 
her: Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? I saw a god ^ 
ascending out of the earth, was the reply. What form is he 
of ? asked Saul. She said: An old man covered with a 
mantle.* And Saul knew that it was Samuel himself, and 
stooped with his face to the ground, and bowed himself. 
And Samuel said to Saul: Why hast thou disquieted me, to 
bring me up ? And Saul answered: I am sorely distressed; 
for the Philistines make war against me, and God has de- 
parted from me, and answers me no more, neither by proph- 
ets, nor by dreams; therefore I have called thee, that thou 
mayest make known to me what I shall do. Then said 
Samuel: Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the 
Lord has departed from thee, and has become thy enemy ? 
And the Lord has done to thee^ as He spoke by me; for the 
Lord has rent the kingdom out of thy hand, and given it to 
thy neighbor even to David: Moreover, the Lord will also 
deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines; and 
to-morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the Lord 
will indeed deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the 
Philistines. When Saul heard these words, he fell prostrate 
to the ground, fainting; for he had eaten no bread all the 
day, nor all the night. And the woman saw that Saul was sore 
troubled, and said to him: Behold thy handmaid has obeyed 
thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have 
hearkened to thy words which thou spokest to me. Now 
therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also to the voice of thy 
handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee ; and 
.eat, that thou mayest have strength when thou^ goest on thy 
way. But he refused, and said: I will not eat." But his ser- 
vants, together with the woman, compelled him, and he 

^ The instant Saul pronounced Samuel's name, she saw him in her cell. 

2 She concluded that the prophet would not appear to any but the king. 

3 Elohim irio^nifies a god^ and is applied either to the true God, to a magistrate, or 
personages of great honor. 

•*Saul saw nobody, but trusted to the woman's description of the prophet. 
6 And not " to him," as Kennicott proves from three Hebrew MSS. and the Greek' 
and Vulgate versions. 



hearkened to their voice. So he arose from the earth, and 
sat upon the bed. And the woman had a fat call" in the 
house; and she hastened, and killed it, and took flour, and 
kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof. And 
she brought it before Saul, and before his servants ; and they 
ate. Then they rose up, and went away that night. 

There shall not be found among you any one that uses 

divination, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar 

spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are 
an abomination to the Lord. — 5 Mos. 18, 11, 12. 



101, DAYID AGAIN IN ZIKLAG. SAUL'S DEATH 
AT GILBOA. 

(1 Sam. 29. 31.) 

Now the Philistines gathered all their armies together at 
Aphek: and the Israelites pitched by a fountain in Jezreel. 
And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds, and 
by thousands; but David and his men passed on in the rear- 
ward with Achish. Then said the princes of the Philistines: 
What do these Hebrews here? And Achish said: This is 
David, the servant of Saul, who has been with me these days, 
or these years, and I have found nothing wrong in him ever 
since he came, until this day. But the lords of the Philis- 
tines were angry at Achish for bringing David, and said: 
Make this fellow go back, and let him not come with us to 
the battle, lest in the battle he be an adversary to us; for 
wherewith should he reconcile himself to his master ? should 
it not be with the heads of these men ? Is not this David, 
of whom they sang one to another in dances, saying: Saul 
slew his thousands, and David his ten thousands? Then 
Achish called David, and said to him: Surely, as the Lord 
lives, thou hast been upright, and thy going out and thy com- 
ing in with me in the host is good in my sight; for I have 
not found evil in thee since the day of thy coming to me to 
this day: nevertheless the lords favor thee not. Therefore 
now return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the lords 
of the Philistines. So David and his men rose up early in 
the morning 'and went away from the camp. On the third 
day, they came to their homes in Ziklag, but found Ziklag 
smitten and burned with fire, and the women and children, 
(among them the two wives of David, Ahinoam and Abigail,) 
taken captives and carried away. Then David and the peo- 
ple that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, till 
they could weep no more. And David was greatly dis- 
tressed; for the people were angry with him and spoke of 



SAMUEL. 165 

stoning him, because he had left the place without any protec- 
tion; but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God. 
And he said to Abiathar the priest: I pray thee, bring me 
hither the ephod. And David inquired of the Lord, saying: 
Shall J pursue after this troop ? shall 1 overtake them ? And 
He answered him: Pursue; for thou shalt surely overtake 
them, and without fail recover all. So David went, he and 
his six hundred men, and came to the brook Besor; there 
two hundred of them stayed, because they were weary 
and faint and could go no further. But David and four 
hundred men followed on. 

As they passed along, not knowing exactly which way to 
go, David's men found an Eg3rptian \jing ill upon the road, 
and almost dead with want and famine. David gave him 
sustenance, both meat and drink, and refreshed him. He 
then asked him to whom he belonged, and whence he came. 
The man said : I am a young man of Egypt, servant to an 
Amalekite ; and my master left me, because three days ago 
I fell sick. We made an invasion upon the south of the 
Cherethites, and upon the coast which belongs to Judah, and 
upon the south of Caleb: and we burned Ziklag with fire. 
And David said to him: Canst thou bring me down to this 
company ? And he said : Swear to me by God, that thou 
wilt neither kill me, nor dehver me into the hands of my 
master, and I will bring thee down to this company. 

And when he had brought him down, behold they were 
spread abroad upon all the earth, eating and drinking, and 
dancing, because of all the great spoil that they had taken 
out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of 
Judah. And David smote them from the twilight even to 
the evening of .the next day: and there escaped not a man 
of them, save four hundred young men, who rode upon 
camels, and fled. And David recovered all that the Amale- 
kites had carried away: and rescued his two wives. 

Now the Philistines fought against Israel ; and the men 
of Israel fled from them, and many fell down slain on Mount 
Gilboa. Aiid the Phihstines followed hard after Saul and 
his sons ; and they slew Jonathan, and two other of Saul's 
sons. And the battle went greatly against Saul. The 
archers hit him ; and he was sore wounded. Then he said 
to his armor-bearer : Dyaw thy sword, and thrust me through 
therewith ; lest the Philistines come and thrust me through, 
and abuse me. But his armor-bearer would not ; for he was 
sore afraid ; therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it. 
And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell 
likewise upon his sword, and died with him. So Saul died, 



166 SAMUEL. 

and his three sons, and his armor-bearer, and all his men, 
that same day together. On the morrow, when the Philis- 
tines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his three 
sons lying dead on Mount Gilboa. Then they cut off Saul's 
head, stripped off his armor, and sent into the land of the 
Philistines round about, to publish it in the house of their 
idols, and among the people. And they put Saul's armor in 
the house of their idol Ashtaroth, and fastened up his dead 
body, and the dead bodies of his sons to the wall of the city 
of Beth-shan. But when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead 
heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant 
men arose, and went all night, took the body of Saul and the 
bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and came to 
Jabesh, and burnt them there. And they took their bones, 
and buried them under a tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven 
days. 

A man's steps are from the Lord ; how, then, can a man understand 
his way ? — Prov. 20, 24. 

Boast not thyself of to-morrow, for thou knowest not what a day may 
bring forth. — Prov. 27, 1, 

Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is 
no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth. Happy is he 
that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord, his 
God.— Ps. 146, 3, 4, 5. 



THE SECOND 

BOOK OF SAMUEL; 



102. DAVID'S LAMENTATION OYER SAUL AND 
JONATHAN. 

(2 Sam. 1.) 

After tlie death of Saul, when David had returned from 
the slaughter of the Amalekites, and had abode two days in 
Ziklag^ a man came out of the camp from Saul with his 
clothes rent, and earth upon his head, in the habit of a 
mourner. When he came to David, he fell to the earth, 
and made his obeisance. David said to him: From 
whence comest thou ? Out of the camp of Israel have I 
escaped, was the reply. And David said : How went the 
matter ? I pray thee, tell me. He answered : The people have 
fled from the battle, many of the people also have fallen and 
are dead ; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also. But 
David said to the young man that told him : How knowest 
thou that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead ? The young 
man answered : As I happened by chance upon Mount 
Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon his spear ; and lo, the 
chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. And when 
he looked behind him, he saw me, and called to me and said : 
"Who art thou ? I answered him : I am an Amalekite. And 
he spoke to me, saying : Come, I pray thee, and put me to 
death, for anguish has seized me, so that there is scarcely life 
in me. So I went to him and slew him ; because I was sure 
that he could not live. And I took the crown that was on 
his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have 
brought them hither to my lord. Then David took hold of 
his clothes and rent them ; and all the men that were with 
him rent their clothes. They mourned and wept, and fasted 
until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the 
people of the Lord, and for the house of Israel ; because so 
many of them had been slain. 

1 It is called the Second Book of Samuel, because it gives an account of the ful- 
filment of what Samuel foretold. It is the history of David's reign. 



168 SAMUEL. 

And David, when the transports of his grief were over, 
said to the young man that told him : Whence art thou ? 
And he answered : I am the son of a stranger, an Amalekite. 
Then David said to him : How wast thou not afraid to stretch 
forth thy hand to destroy the Lord's anointed ? Thy blood 
be upon thy head ; for thy mouth has testified against thee, 
saying : I have slain the Lord's anointed. And, at David's 
command, one of the young men of his guard fell upon him 
and slew him.^ 

And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul, and 
over Jonathan his son: 

The pride of Israel is slain upon thy heights ; 

How are the heroes fallen ! 

Tell it not in Gath, 

Proclaim it not in the streets of Askelon ; 

Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice. 

Lest the daughters of the heathen triumph! 

Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew 

And no rain upon you ! 

For there the shield of the mighty has been vilely cast away; 

The shield of Saul, the armor of him anointed with oil ! 

From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the heroes, 

The bow of Jonathan never shrank back, 

And the sword of Saul returned not empty. 

Saul and Jonatlian, beloved and graceful in their lives. 

Were not parted in their death. 

They were swifter than eagles, 

They were stronger than lions. 

Ye daughters of Israel, Aveep over Saul ! 

Who clothed you in scarlet and costly garments, 

Who put on golden ornaments upon your apparel! 

How are the heroes fallen in the battle ! 

Jonathan, thou wast slain upon thy heights! 

1 am grieved for thee, my brother Jonathan ; 
Thou wast very dear to me. ^ 
Thy love to me was more precious than the love of women. 
How are the heroes fallen ! 
How the weapons of war have perished ! 

Rejoice not when thy enemy falls, and let not thy heart be glad when 
he stumbles. — Prov. 24, 17. 



lOa. DAVID KING OF JUDAH. C. E., 1056-1048. 

(2 Sam. 2. 3.) 

After this, David inquired of the Lord : ' Shall 1 go up 
into any of the cities of Judah ? And the Lord said to him : 
Go up. And David said : Whither shall I go up ? And He 

' What the young man told David was not true, for, as we have road, Saul had 
killed himself. He told a lie. because he thought it would please David, and that 
David would reward him for killing Saul. 

2 By Abiathar the high priest. 



SAMUEL. 169 

said : Unto Hebron.* So David went up thither, and took 
Yv^ith him his two wives, and his armed men ; whereupon all 
the people of the tribe of Judah came to him and made him 
their King. On learning that the men of Jabesh-gilead had 
buried Saul, he sent messengers to them, and said : Blessed 
be ye of the Lord, that ye have shown this kindness to your 
lord, even to Saul, and have buried him. And now the Lord 
show kindness and truth to you, and I also will requite to 
you this kindness. Therefore now let your hands be strength- 
ened, and be ye valiant. For though Saul is dead, you need 
not despair, for there is still a King in Judah, who stands 
ready to protect you. 

But Abner, the former commander-in-chief of the army 
of Saul, took IsH-B0SHETH,2 the son of Saul, and conducted 
him beyond the Jordan to Mahanaim,^ and wresting succes- 
sively Gilead, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and (with the 
exception of Judah) all Israel from the Philistines, he pro- 
claimed Ish-bosheth king over all Israel, when he was forty 
years old. A civil war soon began. Abner gathered the 
servants of his newly-made King and came from Mahanaim 
to Gibeon, where David's chief-commander, Joab, the son of 
Zeruiah, who was David's sister, met him, according to 
David's appointment. Joab had with him his two brothers, 
Abishai and Asahel. Soon a battle commenced, in which 
the men of Israel were beaten, and Joab and his brothers 
pressed upon them, and pursued them with great alacrity. 

Abnev himself was keenly pursued by Asahel, who was as light of foot 
as a wild roe. When Abner looked' behind, he said to him : Turn 
aside from following me ; wherefore should I smite thee to the ground ? 
But he refused to turn aside; then Abner, with the hinder end of the spear 
smote and killed him. So Abner retreated, passing over the Jordan, and 
joined his master in Mahanaim. Nevertheless, the war between the house 
of Saul and the house of David was continued ; but David grew stronger 
and stronger, and the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker. At last, 
even Abner saw the utter hopelessness of the struggle ; and when just at 
that time he received an affront from Ish-bosheth, he sent to David and 
proposed to make a private agreement with him, and to bring over all 
Israel to his rule. David was willing to treat with him, but first required 
him to restore to him Michal * his wife, whom Saul had taken from him. 
And Ish-bosheth sent and took her from her husband, who went with her 
weeping behind her to BeliurimJ* After delivering her to David, Abner had 
communication with the elders of Israel, saying : You sought for David 

ilts ori^nal name was Kirjath-Arba (Nn. 14), 20 Roman miles south of Jeru- 
palem. There Abraham bought the cave of Machpelah. 

2 His name was Ish-baal, the man of Baal, which was altered reproachfully into 
Ish-bosheth, the man of Shame. 

3 A fortified camp, at that time the militaiy capital of the country on the east 
Bide of Jordan. 

4 David loved her, and she could now be of great service to him, as uniting him 
to Saul's family. 

^Not far from the territory of Judah. 



170 SAMUEL. 

in times past to be king over you : Now then do it ; for the Lord ha?? 
spoken of David, saying: By the hand of my servant David I will save 
my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand 
of all their enemies. Then he called together the tribe of Benjamin and 
spoke to^ them to the same purpose, and Avhen he saw that all yielded 
to his opinion, he took about twenty of his friends and came to David to 
Hebron. He was kindly received by David, and a feast was prepared for 
him and his followers. And Abner said to David : I will arise and gather 
all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a league with thee, 
and that thou mayest .reign over all that thy heart desire th. David then 
dismissed Abner and he went away in peace. Just at that very time Joab 
came back from a plundering expedition, with a great spoil, and they told 
him, saying : Abner the son of Ner came to the King, and he has sent 
him away in peace. Joab went immediately to the King and reproached 
him for having allowed Abner to go back alive. Thou knowest Abner, 
said he, that he came to deceive thee, and to spy thy going out and thy 
coming in, and to know all that thou doest. Why is it that thou hast 
sent him away ? 

When Joab had left David, he sent messengers after Abner in the 
king's name, who brought him back, but David knew it not. Joab 
took him aside in the gate to speak with him quietly, pretending secret 
business, and smote him there under the fifth rib that he died, for the 
blood of Asahel his brother. When David heard that Abner was slain, 
it grieved his soul, and he said : I and my kingdom are guiltless before the 
Lord for ever of the blood of Abner the son of Ner. 

And he said to Joab, and to all the people that were with him : Rend 
your clothes, and gird you with sackcloth, and mourn before Abner. 
King David himself ibllo wed the bier. And they buried Abner in Hebron : 
and the king lifted up his voice and wept at the grave of Abner; and all 
the people wept. And the king lamented over Abner, and said : Died 
Abner as a fool dieth ? Thy hands wei'e not bound, nor thy feet put into 
fetters : as a man falleth before wicked men, so fellest thou. And all the 
people wept again over him. And when all the people came to cause David 
to eat meat while it was yet day, David swore, saying : So do God to me, 
and more also, if I taste bread or aught else, till the sun be down. And 
all the people understood that day that it was not of the king to slay 
Abner the son of Ner. And the king said to his servants : Know you not 
that there is a chief and a great man fallen this day in Israel ? But I am 
still weak, and just anointed king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, 
are mightier than I am. The Lokd shall reward the evil-doer according 
to his evil deed. 

In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He will make thy paths plain. — 
Prov. 3, 6. 

The Lord chose David His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds ; 
from following the ewes great with young. He brought him to feed Jacob 
His people, and Israel His inheritance. — Ps. 78, 70. 7L . 



104. MURDER OF ISH-BOSHETH. DAVID KING 
OVER ALL ISRAEL. C. E., 1048-1015. 

(2 Sam. 4, 5.) 

When Isli-bosheth, the son of Saul, heard that Abner was 
dead in Hebron, he was discouraged, and all the Israelites 
were in a state of confusion. They had now lost Abner ; 
Ish-bosheth was a weak, pusillanimous prince ; and the son 



SAMUEL. 171 

r 

of Jonathan, Mephtbosheth, the next hope of the royal 
family, was lame. He was but five years old when the tid- 
ings came of the death of Saul and Jonathan, and his nurse 
took him up and fled ; and in the hurry of her flight, he fell, 
and became lame. 

Now Ish-bosheth had two men who were chiefs of hordes, 
Baanah and Rechab, the sons of Rimmon. They arrived 
about mid-day at the house of Ish-bosheth ; and went into 
the midst of the house, as if to fetch wheat, ^ and finding the 
King sleeping in his bed-chamber, they slew him, took off 
his head, and escaped. They brought the head to David to 
Hebron, and said : Behold the head of Ish-bosheth, the son 
of Saul, thy enemy, who sought thy life ; the Loed has 
avenged thee, king, this day of Saul and of his seed. Where- 
upon David answered, and said : As the Loed lives, who has 
redeemed my soul out of all adversity, when one told me, 
saying : Behold, Saul is dead (thinking to have brought good 
tidings), I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, which 
was the reward I gave him for his tidings ; how much more, 
when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own 
house upon his bed ? — shall I not therefore now require his 
blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth ? 
Then David commanded his young men, and they slew them, 
and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up 
over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish- 
bosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron. 
Then came all the elders of the tribes of Israel to David to 
Hebron, and spoke, saying : Behold, we are thy bone and 
thy flesh. Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, 
thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel : and 
the Loed said to thee: Thou shalt tend as a shepherd my 
people and shalt be a ruler over Israel. Whereupon King 
David made a league with them, and they anointed David 
king over Israel.^ 

David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he 
reigned forty years : seven years and six months over Judah 
and thirty and three years over all Israel. 

Now David felt the want of a capital for his kingdom. 
His own city, Hebron, was too far southward. The strong 
city of the Jebasites, built on Mount Zion,^ was in every way 
suited to his purpose. The lower part of this city was taken 

^ Corn for the soldiers, who wei-e maintained at the king's expense. 

2 He was probably anointed by the high-priest; and we read (1 Chron. 12) that 
upwards of 34.000 came together on this occasion, and feasted before the King, 
with royal magnificence, for three days. 

3 A rocky height in the centre of the country, at the boundary between Ben- 
jamin and Judah. 



172 SAMUEL. 

by the men of Judah in the times of Joshua ; the upper city 
was still in the power of the heathen Jebusites, who boasted 
that even the blind and the lame would be able to defend its 
walls against an enemy. David now proclaimed to his host 
that the first man who would scale the rocky side of the 
fortress and kill a Jebusite, should be made chief captain 
of the host. Joab gained the prize. The citadel of Zion 
was taken (1046, C. B.), and David established himself there, 
so that it was called the City of David. ^ 

David also defeated Israel's old enemies, tlie Philistines, repeatedly ; 
and now he perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel, 
and that He had exalted his kingdom for His people Israel's sake. 

Hiram also, the king of Tyre, sent ambassadors to him, and made a 
league of mutual friendship with him. He sent him mechanics, and men 
skillful in building and architecture, with presents of cedar trees and other 
material, that they might build him a royal palace. 

The counsel of the Lord stands for ever ; the thoughts of His heart to 
all generations. — Pa. 33, IL 



105. DAYID BRINGS THE ARK TO JERUSALEM. 

(2 Sam. 6.) 

To give religious sanction to his new capital David went, 
and the people with him, to bring up the ark of God, which 
had been carried in the earlier times of Samuel to the city of 
Kirjath-jearim, and had been left there for almost fifty years 
in the house of Abinadab. 

The ark was placed upon a new cart ; ^ and David and all Israel re- 
joiced before the Lord. But this joy was turned into mourning. As 
they came to Nachon's threshing-floor, the ark was shaken, and Xfzzah, 
who was in charge of it rashly put forth his hand to hold the ark ! And 
the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God smote him 
and he died by the ark of God. So David brought not the ark home to 
himself, but carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite, where 
it remained three months. And the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all that 
he had. Now the king determined again to secure its presence in his 
capital. He called the chiefs of the Levites and exhorted them : Sanctify 
yourselves, both ye and your brethren, that ye may bring up the ark of 
the Lord God to the place that I have prepared for it. Now the Levites 
bore the ark upon their shoulders, others accompanied it as singers and 
musicians, while the whole procession was led by the priests sounding the 
trumpet. As soon as those who bore the ark began to move, oxen and 
fatlings were sacrificed. The king joined the procession of dancers and 
musicians, and being himself clothed Avith a priestly linen robe, the ophod, 
and dancing with the rest, he brought the ark into Jerusalem. And he 
appointed the priests and Levites their respective offices, and provided for 

^In earlier times it was called dSk/ (Gen. 14, 18). After the times of David, 
DTwC'-ll' (foundation of peace), Jerusalem. 

2 Contrary to the command that it should be carried only by the sons of Kohath. 
—Compare page 75. 




Mount Sinai (p. 62).| 




Jerusalem (p. 172). 

Levy Type PhotoEng. Co., Baltimore. 



SAMUEL. 173 

the more regular and splendid public worship. Then David offered burnt- 
offerings and peace-otterings before the Lord, blessed the people in the 
name of the Lord of hosts, and dealt among the assembled people to every- 
one a cake of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine, and 
every one went to his house. When David had returned to bless his 
household, Michal, the daughter of Saul, came out to meet him, and said* 
HoAv glorious was the king of Israel to-day, who danced after an unseemly 
manner among the servants and the hand-maidens ! Yes, said David, in 
the presence of the Lord, who chose me in preference to thy father, to ap- 
point me ruler over His people, the Israelites ! in the presence of the Lord 
I will debase myself yet more than this, without any regard to what the 
hand-maidens think of it. 

Those that honor God, He will honor ; but those that despise Him, 
shall be lightly esteemed. — 1 Sam. 2, 3. 



106. DAVID'S PURPOSE TO BUILD GOD A HOUSE. 
DAVID'S SUCCESS IN WAR 

(2 Sam. 7.) 

As David sat in his house and the Lord had given him rest round about 
from all his enemies, he said to Nathan, the prophet : Lo ! I dwell in a 
house of cedars, but the ark of the covenant dwells under curtains. 

I will not enter into the tent of my house, 

I will not go up to the bed of my couch ; 

I will not give sleep to my eyes, 

Nor slumber to my eyelids. 

Until I find a place for the Lord, « 

A dweUing-tent for the Mighty One of Jacob ! 

— Ps. 132. 
Then Nathan said : Do all that is in thy heart ; for the Lord is with 
thee. The same night, however, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, 
saying : Go and tell David My sers^ant : Thus says the Lord : Thou shalt 
not build Me a house to dwell in ; for I have not dwelt in a house since 
the time that I brought up Israel to this day, but have walked in a tent 
and in a tabernacle. Wheresoever I have walked with all Israel, spoke I 
a word to any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My 
people, saying : Why have you not built Me a house of cedar 1 Now 
therefore, thus shalt thou say to My servant David : Thus says the Lord 
of hosts : I took thee from the sheep-cote, from following the sheep, to be 
ruler over My people, over Israel : And I have been with thee whitherso- 
ever thou hast walked, and have cut off all thy enemies from before thee, 
and have made thee a great name, like the name of the great men that are 
in the earth. Also the Lord tells thee that He will make thee a house. 
And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I 
will set up thy seed after thee, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall 
build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom 
for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be My son. If he commit in- 
iquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the 
children of men ; but My mercy shall not depart away from him, as I 
took it from Saul, Avhom I put away before thee. And thy house and 
thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee. When DaA'id un- 
derstood this from the prophet, he came to the ark and fell down on his 
face, and adored God, and returning thanks to Him for all His benefits, as 
well for those that He had already bestowed upon Him, as for those also 
which He had promised to his posterity. 

And after this it came to pass that David smote the Philistines again. 



174 SAMUEL. 

and subdued them ; and he smote Moab, also Hadadezer, king of Zobah,i 
and the Syrians of Damascus. He kept in subjection all Edom, and the 
Lord preserved David whithersoever he went. Exulting in the prospect 
of subjugating all his enemies David sung : 

Elohim hath promised in His holiness : 

I shall rejoice, I shall portion out Shechem, 

And measure out the valley of Succoth. 

Mine is Gilead and mine Manasseh, 

And Ephraim is the helm of my head, 

Judah is my sceptre, 

Moab is my wash-pot. 

Upon Edom I cast my shoe. 

Cry out concerning me, O Philistia ! 

Who will conduct me to the fortified city ? 
Who will bring me to Edom ? ! 
Hast not Thou, Elohim, cast us off, 
And goest not forth, Elohim, with ourarmies'? — ■ 
Grant us deliverance from the oppressor ; 
Yea, vain is the help of man. 
In Elohim shall Ave obtain the victory, 
And He will tread down our oppressors. — ^Ps. 60. 
David's dominion was now an empire, extending far as the large 
promise made originally to Abraham. He governed it in the fear of the 
Lord, and in the folloAving words he gave utterance to his determination 
as king to give earnest heed to the sanctity of his walk, of his rule, and 
of his house : 

Of mercy and right Avill I sing, 

To Thee, Jahve, will I harp, 
I will give heed to the way of uprightness — 

When Avilt Thou come unto me 1 ! 
I will walk in the innocence of my heart 

within my house, 
I will not set before mine eyes 

a worthless action ; 
The commission of excesses I hate, 

nothing shall cleave to me. 
A false heart shall keep far from me, 

I will not cherish an evil thing. 
Whoso secretly slandereth his neighbor, 

him will I destroy ; 
Whoso hath a high look and puffed-up heart, 
him will I not suffer. 
Mine eyes are upon the faithful of the land, 

that they may be round about me ; 
Whoso walketh in the way of uprightness, 
he shall serve me. 
He shall not sit within my house 

who practiseth deceit ; 
He who speaketh lies shall not continue 

before mine eyes. 
Every morning will I destroy 

all the wicked of the earth, 
That I may root out of Jahve's city 

all workers of iniquity. — Ps. 101. 

J One of the kintrdoms forming part of the land of Aram (Syria) generally. It 
was on the north 6l Damascus. 



SAMUEL. 175 

David reigned over all Israel without disturbance, and he administered 
judgment and justice to all his people. Joab, the son of David's sister 
Zeruiah, was over the host ; Jehoshaphat Avas recorder ;i Zadok and Ahime- 
lech were the priests ; Seraiah was the scribe (or secretary of state) ; Be- 
naiah Avas over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites (the life-guards of 
the king) ; and David's sons were chief rulers. 

Both riches and honor come of Thee and Thou reignest over all ; in 
Thy hand is power and might ; therefore God, we thank Thee, and 
praise Thy glorious name. — 1 Chron. 29, 12, 13. 



107. DAVID'S KINDNESS TO MEPHIBOSHETH. 
THE WAE WITH THE AMMONITES. 

(2 Sam. 9. 10.) 

David was now anxious to prove his good will towards the 
fallen family of his predecessor Saul. A servant of the 
house of Saul, Ziha, was called to the king, who asked him: 
Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may show 
peculiar kindness to him ? > Ziba rephed: Jonathan has yet 
a son, who is lame on his feet. Whereupon the king com- 
manded to send for him. Now when Mephibosheth, the son 
of Jonathan, had come to David, he fell on his face, and did 
reverence. And David said: Art thou Mephibosheth ? Be- 
hold, thy servant ! was the reply. And David said: Fear 
not; for 1 will surely show thee kindness for Jonathan thy 
father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy 
father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. 
Mephibosheth bowed himself, and said: What am I that 
thou shouldst take any notice of me ? 

Then the king called Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him : 
I have given to Mephibosheth all the land that belonged to 
Saul. Do thou, therefore, and thy sons, take care of it, and 
bring all the fruits that grow upon it to him. But as for 
Mephibosheth, he shall stay with me, and always eat at my 
table, and be as one of my sons. So Mephibosheth lived in 
Jerusalem and did eat continually at the table of the king. 

About this time died Kahash, the king of the Ammonites, 
who was a friend of David; and when his son, Hanun, had 
succeeded his father in the kingdom, David sent ambassadors 
to him to comfort him. But the princes of the Ammonites 
took this message in evil part, and said David had sent men 
to spy out the country, under the pretence of humanity and 
kindness. 

Wherefore Hanun abused the ambassadors in a very harsh manner ; 
for he shaved the one half of their beards, cut off the one half of their gar- 
ments, and sent them away. Hanun, now justly afraid of David's venge- 

^ The eastern princes used to record all circuraetances of note during their 
reign, and keep a daily journal. Those who filled this important office were let 
into all the secrete of state. 



176 SAMUEL. 

ance, made preparations for war. He also prevailed upon four Syrian 
kings to assist him for pay, and thus he assembled an enormous host. 
When David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host of the mighty 
men, who pitched their camp by Rabbath, the capital of the Ammonites. 
Whereupon the enemy came out in two bodies ; for the Syrians were set 
in array in front of the city of Medaba in the tribe of Reuben. When 
Joab saw that the front of the battle was against him before and behind, 
he chose of all the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against 
the Syrians : and the rest of the people he delivered into the hand of 
Abishai his brother, and bade him set them in opposition to the Ammon- 
ites. And he said : If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt 
help me ; but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will 
come and help thee. Be of good courage, and let us play the men for our 
people, and for the cities of our God : and the Lord do that which seems to 
him good. Now Joab drew nigh, and the people that were with him, to 
the battle against the Syrians : and they fled before h-im, seeing which the 
Ammonites imitated their auxiliaries and fled also to the city. So Joab, 
who had thus overcome the enemy, returned with joy to Jerusalem to the 
king. But the Syrians rencAved the war, and David himself passed over 
the Jordan with all his army. When he met them he joined battle with, 
and overcame them utterly. The Syrians now submitted to David, and 
consented to pay tribute. David having returned to Jerusalem, sent Joab 
to fight against the Ammonites, who overran their country, laid it waste, 
shut them up in their metropolis, Rabbath, and besieged them. 

The soul of the Avicked longs to do evil ; his neighbor finds no favor in 
his eyes, — Prov. 21, 10, 



108. DAVID'S SIN. 

(2 Sam. 11.) 

David now fell into a very grievous sin; for when late one 
evening he took a view round him from the roof of his royal 
palace, where he used to walk at that hour, he saw a woman 
washing herself in her own house; she was one of extraor- 
dinary beauty, and therein surpassed ail other women ; David 
inquired after her, and learned that she was the wife of 
Uriah, the Hittite, who had gone with Joab to fight against 
the Ammonites, and that her name was Bathslicha. 

And David sent word to Joab, saying: Send Uriah, the 
Hittite, to me. Joab sent him to David. When he had 
come, David asked him about the war and spoke kindly to 
him, pretending to be his friend. But after three days he 
sent him back to the army with a letter for Joab. In the 
letter David wrote, saying: Set Uriah in the forefront of the 
hottest battle, and retire from him, that he may be smitten, 
and die. 

Now when Joab enclosed the city, he assigned Uriah to a 
place where he knew that valiant men were, so that Uriah 
soon met with the death which David had planned for him. 

Then Joab sent a messenger and charged him, saying: 
"When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the 



n 



SAMUEL. 177 

war to the king, and if he say to thee: "Wherefore approached 
ye so nigh to the city when ye did fight ? knew ye not that 
they would shoot from the wall ? Then say thou: Thy ser- 
vant Uriah, the Hittite, is dead also. 

So the messenger went, and told David all that Joab had 
sent him for. Then David said: Thus shalt thou say to 
Joab: Let not this thing displease thee; for the sword de- 
vours one as well as another: make thy battle more strong 
against the city, and overthrow it. 

Now when Bathsheba heard that Uriah, her husband, was 
dead, she mourned for him. And when the mourning was 
past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she be- 
came his wife, and bore him a son. But the thing that Da- 
vid had done displeased the Lord. He sent Nathan to 
David, and he came and said: Give judgment to me on this 
point. There were two men in one city; the one rich, and 
the other poor. The rich m.an had exceeding many flocks 
and herds; but the poor man had nothing save one little 
ewe-lamb, which he had bought, and nourished up; and it 
grew up together with him, and with his children ; it did eat 
of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his 
bosom, and was to him as a daughter. And there came a 
traveler to the rich man; and he spared to take of his own 
flock, and of his own herd, to dress for the way-faring man 
that had come to him; but took the poor man's lamb, and 
dressed it for the man that had come to him. And David's 
anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to 
Nathan: As the Lord liveth, the man that has done this thing 
shall surely die : and he shall restore the lamb four-fold ^ 
because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. 

Nathan ^aid to David: Thou art the man. Thus says the 
Lord God of Israel: I anointed thee king over Israel, and I 
delivered thee out of the hand of Saul. "Wherefore hast 
thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in 
His sight ? Thou hast killed Uriah, che Hittite, with the 
sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife. Now there- 
fore the sword shall never depart from thy house, and evil 
shall come upon thee from thy own house; because thou 
hast despised Me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah, the Hit- 
tite, to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the 
children of Ammon. For thou didst it secretly; but I will 
do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun. And 
David said to Nathan: I have sinned against the Lord. 
And Nathan said: The Lord also has put away thy sin; thou 
shalt not die. Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast 

^ The exact number prescribed by the law.— Exod. 22, 1. 



178 SAMUEL. 

given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blas- 
pheme, the child also that is born to thee shall surely die. 
When Nathan departed to his house, David lay prostrated 
in the dust, and prayed to the Lord: 

Be merciful to me, Oh God, according to Thy loving kindness : 
According to the greatness of Thy compassion blot out my trans- 
gressions ! 
Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, 
And from my sin make me clean. 

For of my transgressions I am conscious. 
And my sin is ever present to me. 
Against Thee only have I sinned, 
And done that which is evil in Thine eyes. 

O hide Thy face from my sins ; 

And all my iniquities do Thou blot out. 

Create in me a clean heart, O God, 

And renew a steadfast spirit in my inward part. 

Cast me not from Thy presence. 

And Thy holy spirit take not from me. 

Then will I teach transgressors Thy Avays, 

And sinners shall be converted to Thee. (Ps. 51.) 

Afterwards the Lord struck the child that Uriah's wife 
bore to David, and it was very sick. David therefore 
besought God for the child and fasted, and went in, and lay 
all night upon the earth. The elders of his house arose, 
and went to him, to raise him up from the earth; but he 
would not, neither did he eat bread with them. On the 
seventh day the child died, and the servants of David durst 
not tell him of it. But when David saw that his servants 
whispered, he perceived that the child was dead: therefore 
he said to them : Is the child dead ? And they said : He is 
dead. Then David arose from the earth, washed and 
anointed himself, changed his apparel, and came into the 
house of the Lord, and worshipped: then he came to his 
own house; and when he required, they set bread before 
him, and he did eat. Then said his servants to him: "What 
thing is this that thou hast done ? thou didst fast and weep 
for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was 
dead, thou didst rise and eat bread. And he said: While 
the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I thought: 
Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the 
child may live ? But now he is dead, wherefore should I 
fast ? can I bring him back again ? I shall go to him, but 
he shall not return to me. 

Bath-sheba, David's wife, bore him another son, and he « 
called his name Solomon,' and the Lord loved him, and He 

^The Hebrew form of the name is Shelonioh TlD '7i^^ tJi-e peac^ul ; Jedidiah, 
ri'TT that is: Beloved of the Lord. 



SAMUEL. 179 

sent by the hand of Nathan, the prophet; and he called His 
name Jedidiah. 

I made a covenant with my eyes ; why then should I think upon a 
maid. — Job. 31, 1. 

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, 
and turn to the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him. — Is. 55, 7. 



109. ABSALOM'S REBELLION. 

(2 Sam. 15. 16.) 

David repented of his great sin, and humbled himself 
before the Lord; nevertheless it came to pass as the Lord 
had said by Nathan, the prophet: for evil came upon David 
from his own house. David had a son, Absalom, and a 
daughter, Tamar, by Maacha, the daughter of Talmai, 
King of Geshur. Now it came to pass that Tamar was 
treated in a very cruel manner by Amnon, the first-born of 
David's sons; and though he once pretended to be exceed- 
ingly fond of her, he suddenly took so great a dislike to her, 
that he ordered his servants to insult her and turn her vio- 
lently away from his presence. Tamar, in her great afflic- 
tion at his ill-treatment, put on mourning. When Absalom 
heard of it, he desired her not to mind the insult, but 
secretly he hated his half-brother and intended to take ven- 
geance on him. 

So two years after, when Absalom had sheep-shearing, he 
invited all the King's sons" to partake of the rural feast, and 
Amnon went among the rest. Now Absalom had com- 
manded his servants, saying: Mark ye now when Amnon's 
heart is merry with wine, and when I say to you: Smite 
Amnon! then kill him, fear not: have I not commanded 
you ? be courageous, and be valiant. And the servants of 
Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded. 
Absalom then, to avoid his father's just wrath, fled to Geshur, 
in Syria, to his grandfather by his mother's side, who was the 
King of that country, and remained with him three whole 
years. After this time Joab, who was friendly with Absa- 
lom, contrived to get the King's leave for him to be brought 
back to Jerusalem. In two years more Absalom was fully 
restored and permitted to see his father's face again. David 
embraced and kissed him, and received him back into his 
favor. 

In all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Ab- 
salom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the 
crown of his head there was no blemish in him. When he 
polled his head every year, he weighed its hair at two hun- 



180 SAMUEL. 

dred shekels after the King's weight (5 pounds). Now upon 
his success with the King, Absalom procured to himself a 
great many horses, and many chariots, and fifty men to run 
before him. He came early every day to the King's palace, 
and stood beside the road leading to the gate,^ and when any 
man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment, 
then Absalom called upon him, and said: Of what city art 
thou ? And he said: Thy servant is of one of the tribes of 
Israel. Then Absalom said: See, thy matters are good and 
right; but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee. 
He said moreover: Oh that I were made judge in the land, 
that every man who has any suit or cause might come to me, 
and I would do him justice ! And when any man came nigh 
to him to do him reverence, he took him by the hand 
familiarly, and kissed him. In this way he stole the hearts 
of all men. And when he thought he had already the good- 
will of the people secured to him,^ he came to the king, and 
besought him to give him leave to go to Helron,^ and pay a 
sacrifice to God, because he vowed it to Him, when he fled 
out of the country. The king said: Go in peace. So he 
arose and went to Hebron, and with him went two hundred 
men out of Jerusalem, that were called; they went in their 
simplicity, and knew not anything. But Absalom had 
secretly sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying: 
As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then you 
shall say: Absalom reigneth in Hebron. Absalom sent also 
for Ahithophel, the Gilohite,^ David's counsellor, to be 
present when he offered the sacrifices. And the conspiracy 
was strong; for the people increased continually with Absa- 
lom. News soon came to David that the hearts of the men of 
Israel were with Absalom. And David resolved upon 
instant flight: Arise, he exclaimed, and let us flee; for we 
shall not else escape from Absalom: make speed to depart, 
lest he overtake us suddenly, and bring evil upon us, and 
smite the city with the edge of the sword. Most of the 
King's servants were faithful; and he went forth, and all the 
people after him, and tarried in a place that was not far off. 
The whole body of his guards, Cherethites, Pelethites, and 
Githites, passed on before him. 

Then said the king to Ittai the Gittite : ^ Wherefore goest 

1 The gate is the place of concourse, of business, and of justice in oriental 
cities. 

'^ After four years after his reconciliation with his father.— Josephus and some 
ancient versions. 

3 Hebron was then the chief city of the heads of the Levites, and the most 
approved spot for the worship of God. 

^Frorn Giloh, a city near Hebron, in the mountain, in the south of Judah. 

^i. e., the native of Gath, a Philistine in the army of King David. 



SAMUEL. 181 

thou also with us ? return to thy place, and abide with the 
king (that is, with Absalom), or being a stranger, thou canst 
go back to thy home. But he replied : As the Lord liveth, 
and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord 
the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also 
will thy servant be. Now the king passed over the brook 
Kiclron ; ^ but he left behind the ark of the covenant in Jerusa- 
lem. He went up by the ascent of the Mount of Olives and 
wept, he had his head covered and went barefoot: and all 
the people that were with him covered their heads, weep- 
ing as they went up. "When David was told that Ahith- 
ophel was among the conspirators with Absalom, he said : O 
Lord, I pray thee, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into fool- 
ishness. "When David had come to the top of the mount, 
where he worshipped God, behold Hushai, the Archite,'^ 
David's friend, came to meet him with his coat rent, and 
earth upon his head. David said to him : If thou passest 
on with me, then thou shalt be a burden to me; but if thou 
return to the city, and say to Absalom : I will be thy servant, 

king, as I have been thy father's servant hitherto, so will 

1 now also be thy servant: then, mayest thou for me defeat 
the counsel of Ahithophel. And hast thou not there with 
thee Zadok and Abiathar the priests? therefore it shall be, 
that what thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king's house, 
thou shalt tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, by whose 
sons, Ahimaaz apd Jonathan, I may learn everything that 
you can hear. So* Hushai came into the city just when 
Absalom entered it. 

When David had gone a little further, there met him Ziba, 
the servant of Mephibosheth, with a couple of asses, laden 
with provisions, and desired him to take as much of them 
as he and his followers stood in need of. When the king 
asked him where he had left Mephibosheth, he said: Behold, 
he abides at Jerusalem; for he said: To-day shall the house 
of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father. Then said 
the king to Ziba: Behold, thine are all that pertained to 
Mephibosheth. And Ziba said : I humbly beseech thee, that 
I may find grace in thy sight, my lord, king! When David 
came to Bahurim,^ there came out a kinsman of Saul's, 
whose name was Shimei, threw stones at him, cursed him, and 
said: Come out, come out, thou bloody man, thou author of all 
sorts of mischief! The Lord has returned upon thee all the 
blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned. 

* Eastward of Jerasalem, between the city and the Mount of Olives. 

2 From the place or district called Archi (Josh. 16, 2). 

3 A village not far from Jerusalem, beyond the Mount of Olives to the east. 



182 SAMUEL. 

Then Abishai, tlie son of Zeniiah, said to the king: Why 
should this dead dog curse my lord, the king? let me go 
over, I pray thee, and take off his head. And the king said: 
"What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? let him 
curse! the Lord has said to him: Curse David; who shall 
then say: Wherefore hast thou done so? Behold, my own 
son seeketh my life: how much more now may this Benja- 
mite do it? Let him alone, and let him curse ; for the 
Lord has bidden him. It may be that the Lord will look 
on my affliction, and that the Lord will requite me good for 
his cursing this day. And as David and his men went by 
the way, Shimei went along on the hill's side over against 
him, cursed as he went, threw stones at him, and cast dust. 
And the king, and all the people that were with him, arrived 
weary, and refreshed themselves there. Then David implored 
the Lord, and said: 

Lord, how many are my oppressors ! 
Many rise up against me, 

Many say of my soul : 

" There is no help for him in God." 

But Thou, O Lord, art a shield for me, 
My glory and the lifter up of my head. 

1 cried unto the Lord with my voice 
And He answered me from His holy hill. 

I laid me down, and slept ; 

I awaked, for the Lord sustaineth me. 

I will not be afraid of ten thousands of the people 

Who have set themselves against me round about. 

Arise, Lord, help me, O my God ! 
For Thou smitest all mine enemies on the cheek, 
Thou breakest the teeth of the ungodly. 
To the Lord belongeth salvation — 

Upon Thy people be Thy blessing! (Ps. 3.) 

Whoso curses his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in 
midnight darkness. — Prov. 20, 20. 

Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. — Prov. 
16, 18. 



110. CONTINUATION. ABSALOM'S DEATH. 

(2 Sam. 16. 19.) 

In the meantime, Absalom entered Jerusalem, and Ahith- 
ophel with him. "When Hushai had come to Absalom, he said: 
God save the king, God save the king. Is this thy kindness 
to thy friend ? asked Absalom, why wentest thou not with thy 
friend? Nay, was the reply, but whom the Lord, and all 
the men of Israel 'Choose, his will I be, and with him will I 
abide. And again, whom should I serve ? should I not 



SAMUEL. 183 

serve in the presence of his son? As I have served in thy 
father's presence, so will I be in thy presence. This speech 
persuaded Absalom, who before suspected Hushai. Absalom 
then consulted with AhithopheP what he ought to do. 
Ahithophel's advice was: Let me choose out twelve. thousand 
men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night: I 
will come upon him while he is weary and weak-handed, and 
make him afraid; all the people that are with him shall flee; 
I will smite the king only, and bring back all the people to 
thee. This saying pleased Absalom w^ell, and all the elders 
of Israel. Then said Absalom: Call now Hushai, the Arch- 
ite, also, and let us hear likewise what he says. When 
Hushai had come, Absalom spoke to him, saying: Ahitho- 
phel has spoken after this manner: shall we do after his 
saying? if not, speak thou. Now Hushai w^as sensible that 
if Ahithophel's counsel were followed, David would be in 
danger of being seized on, and slain; so he attempted to 
introduce a contrary opinion, and said: The counsel that 
Ahithophel has given is not good at this time. For, said 
Hushai, thou knowest thy father and his men, they are 
mighty men, and they are chafed in their minds, as a bear 
robbed of her whelps in the field: thy father is a man of 
war, and there is no chance of seizing him by surprise; there 
will sure be sharp fighting, and the terror of the names of 
David, and Joab, and Abishai, and their companions would 
magnify the first few blows received into a victory, and thy 
men would flee in panic." Therefore I counsel, that all Israel 
be gathered to thee, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, as the 
sand that is by the sea for multitude; and that thou go to 
battle in thy own person. So shall we come upon him in 
some place where he shall be found, and we will light upon 
him as the dew f alleth on the ground : and of him, and of all 
the men that are with him, there shall not be left so much as 
one. Moreover, if he be gotten into a city, then shall all 
Israel bring ropes to that city, and we will draw it into the 
river, until there be not one small stone found there. And 
Absalom and all the men of Israel said: The counsel of 
Hushai, the Archite, is better than the counsel of Ahithophel: 
for the LoED had appointed to defeat the good counsel of 
Ahithophel, to the intent that He might bring evil upon 
Absalom. Then said Hushai to Zadok and Abiathar the 
priests: Send quickly, and tell David, saying: Lodge not 
tliis night in the plains of the wilderness, but speedily pass 
over. Jonathan and Ahimaaz, sent by their fathers, having 

1 Some account for Ahithophel's treason by the supposition that, as Bath-sheba's 
grandfather (2 Sam. 11, 3 and 33, 34), he -wished to revenge on David the evil done 
to her. 



184 SAMUEL. 

narrowly escaped witli their lives, brought at midnight this 
warning to David to cross the river the same night. Then 
David arose, and passed over Jordan: by the morning light 
there lacked not one of them that had not passed over. 
"When Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he 
left Jerusalem in despair, returned to his own city, Giloh, 
near Hebron, put his household in order, and hanged himself, 
and was buried in the sepulchre of his father. As for David, 
he came to Mahanaim, and all the chief men of the country 
received him with great pleasure. These were Barzillai, 
the Gileadite, Shobi, the ruler among the Ammonites, and 
Machir, the son of Ammiel. All these furnished him with 
plentiful provisions for himself and his followers. 

In the meantime, Absalom got together a vast army to 
oppose his father; and he himself, at the head of his army, 
passed over Jordan in pursuit of his father. Both camps 
were pitched not far from Mahanaim, in the country of Gilead. 
Absalom appointed his cousin Amasa to be captain of all his 
host, instead of Joab. 

David numbered the people that were with him, and set 
captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them. 
He sent forth a third part of the people under the hand of 
Joab, a third part under the hand of Abishai, and a third 
part under the hand of Ittai, the Gittite. Then the king 
said to the people: I will surely go forth with you myself 
also. But the people answered: Thou shalt not go with us, 
for they will care more to take thee, than they will to take 
all the rest who shall go out against them. And the king 
said: What seems to you best I will do, and he stood by the 
gateside, and all the people came out by hundreds, and by thou- 
sands. Now he commanded Joab and Abishai, and Ittai, say- 
ing: Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with 
Absalom. And the people heard when the king gave all 
the captains charge concerning Absalom. So the people went 
out into the field against Israel. The battle took place in the 
wood of Ephraim, on the east side of Jordan. The men of 
Israel were slain before the servants of David, and there 
was there a great slaughter that day of twenty thousand men. 
For the battle was there scattered over the face of all the 
country; and the wood devoured more people that day than 
the sword devoured. Absalom met the servants of David, 
and when the mule upon which he rode came under a great 
oak, he entangled his hair greatly in the large boughs of the 
knotty tree, that spread a great way, and there he hung in 
the air upon the boughs, for his mule had escaped. And a 
man in the army saw him, and told Joab, saying: Behold, I 
saw Absalom hanged in an oak. And Joab said: Why didst 



SAMUEL. 185 

thou not kill him ? I would have given thee ten shekels of 
silver, and a girdle.^ The man answered: Though I should 
receive a thousand shekels of silver, I would not put forth 
my hand against the king's son ; for in our hearing the king 
charged thee, and Abishai, and Ittai, saying: Beware that 
none touch the young man Absalom. Then said Joab: I 
may not tarry thus with thee. And he took three darts in 
his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, 
while he was yet alive, hanging in the branches of the 
oak. And ten young men who bare Joab's armor came after- 
ward and slew him, and pulled down his dead body, and cast 
it into a great pit in the wood, and laid a very great heap of 
stones upon him.^ Then Joab sounded a retreat, and recalled 
his soldiers from pursuing after Israel. And all the men 
who had been with Absalom fled, every one to his own 
home. Now as David was waiting between the gates for 
news from the battle-field, one of the watchmen gave the 
king notice, that the son of Zadok, the high priest, came 
running. David was very glad and said: He is a messenger 
of good tidings. Ahimaaz appeared and worshipped the 
king. And when the king inquired of him about tiie battle, 
he said: he brought him the good news of victory. And 
the king said : Is the young man Absalom safe ? And 
Ahimaaz answered: When Joab sent me thy servant, I saw 
a great tumult, but I knew not what it was. And behold, 
Cushi came, and said: Tidings, my lord the king: for the 
Lord has avenged thee this day of all them that rose up 
against thee. And the king said to Cushi: Is the young 
man Absalom safe ? And Cushi answered: The enemies of 
my lord the king, and all that rise against thee to do thee 
hurt, be as that young man is. And the king was much 
moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: 
and as he went, thus he said: my son Absalom! my son, 
my son Absalom! would G-od I had died for thee, Absa- 
lom, my son, my son ! And the victory that day was turned 
into mourning to all the people ; for the people heard say that 
day how the king was grieved for his son. Therefore they 
stole into the city by another way, that he might not see 
them, like persons who were ashamed and fleeing from the 
battle, instead of those who had just gained the victory. The 
king kept on mourning; he covered his face, and cried with a 
loud voice : my son Absalom ! Absalom, my son, my son ! 

1 A captain's commission, denoted by giving him a military girdle or sash. — 
Comp. Is. ->>, 21. 

2 So that after a sort he was stoned : as the law ordered a rel)ellious son to [)e 
—5 Mos. 21, 20. 21. It was a custom lor every passcr-l)y to throw a stone at this 
heap, saying: Thus it shall be done to a rebellious son. 



186 SAMUEL. 

This grief of David was far from agreeable to his friends, 
and upon Joab's earnest remonstrances the king was induced 
to cease his mourning. Whereupon when the people heard 
of it, they ran together to him and saluted him. 

As righteousness tends to life, so he who pursues evil pursues it to his 
death.— Prov. 11, 19. 

let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his 
strength ; but let him that glories, glory in the Lord. — Jer. 9, 22. . 

As streams of water, so is the heart of the king in the hand of the 
Lord; He turns it Avhithersoever He will. Prov. 21, 1. 



111. DAVID'S EETUEN TO JERUSALEM. 

(2 Sam. 19. 20.) 

Now all the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel, 
blaming one another for beginning and encouraging the rebellion, and for 
their remissness in bringmg the king back, saying : The king saved us out 
of the hand of our enemies ; and now he has fled on account of Absalom. 
And Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now there- 
fore why speak you not a word of bringing the king back ? And king 
David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, saying : Speak to the 
elders of Judah, saying : Why are ye the last to bring the king back to 
his house? Ye are my brethren, ye are my bones and my flesh : where- 
fore then are ye the last to bring back the king"? And say to Amasa :^ 
Art thou not of my bone, and of my flesh 1 God do so to me, and more 
also, if thou be not captain of the host before me continually instead 
of Joab. At the persuasion of Amasa the hearts of all the men of Judah 
were bowed, so that they sent this word to the king : Return thou and all 
thy servants. So the king returned, and came to Jordan. And Judah 
came to Gilgal, to conduct the king over Jordan. Also Shimei, the Ben- 
jamite, hastened to meet king David, and fell down before the king, and 
said : Let not my lord impute iniquity to me, neither do thou remember 
that which thy servant did perversely the day that my lord the king went 
out of Jerusalem ; for I know that I have sinned : therefore behold, I have 
come the first this' day of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my 
lord the king. Now though Abishai advised the king to kill Shimei, the 
kin^ pardoned him generously and said : Thou shalt not die. Soon after 
Shimei, Mephibosheth came to meet the king. From the day tli^g king 
had departed, Mephibosheth had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his 
beard, nor washed his clothes. There was every apparent sign of deep 
grief. When they reached Jerusalem, the king said to him: Wherefore 
wentest not thou with me, Mephibosheth ? And he answered : My lord, 

king, my servant deceived me ; for thy servant said : I will saddle 
an ass, that I may ride thereon, and go to the king ; because thy servant 
is lame. And he has slandered thy servant to my lord the king ; but my 
lord the king is as an angel of God : do tlierefore what is good in thy 
eyes. For all of my father's house were but dead men befoi'e my lord the 
king ; yet didst thou set thy servant among them that eat at thy own 
table. What right therefore have I yet to cry auy more to the king ? 
And the king said to him : Why speakest thou any more of thy matters "? 

1 have said : Thou and Ziba divide the land. And Mephibosheth said : 
Yea, let him take all, it suffices me that thou hast recovered thy kingdom. 

' Amasa was David's nephew, whom he was particularly desirous to bring over 
to his interest, and who, judgins: his owu case desperate, might persuade Judah 
to hinder or delay the king's return. 



SAMUEL. 187 

Barzillai also, the Gileadite, came down to conduct the king over Jordan. 
Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even fourscore years old : he had 
made a plentiful provision for the king at Mahanaim, and now the king 
invited him, saying : Come thou over with me, and I will take care of 
thee, and p];ovide for thee in Jerusalem. But Barzillai answered : How 
long have I to live, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem 1 I 
am this day fourscore years old : can I discern between good and evil 1 
can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink 1 can I hear any more 
the voice of singing-men and singing-women 1 wherefore then should thy 
servant be yet a burden to my lord the king "i Thy servant will go a little 
way over Jordan with the king : and why should the king recompense 
me with such a reward"? Let thy servant, I pray thee, turn back again, 
that I may die in my own city, and be buried by the grave of my father 
and of my mother : but behold thy servant Chimham, my son ; let him 
go over with my lord the king ; and do to him what shall seem good to 
thee. The king answered : He shall go with me, and I will do for him 
whatever Avill please thee. And the king kissed Barzillai, blessed him, 
and allowed him to go to his own home. 

Then the king went on to Gilgal. Now the men of Israel 
came to him, and said: Why have our brethren, the men of 
Judah, stolen thee away, and have brought the king in pri- 
vate manner, and not conjointly with all the tribes over Jor- 
dan ? The men of Judah pleaded their near relation to David, 
and their words were fiercer than the words of the men of 
Israel. The quarrel became serious, and Sheba, the son of 
Bichri, a Benjamite, took advantage of the strife, and blew 
his trumpet, and said: We have no part in David, neither 
have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: every man to his 
tents, Israel ! So every man of Israel followed Sheba the 
son of Bichri; but the men of Judah adhered to their king, 
and settled him at his royal palace at Jerusalem. Then David 
appointed Amasa for the captain of his forces, and said to 
him: Assemble me the men of Judah within three days, and 
be thou here present. So Amasa went; but he tarried longer 
than the set time which the king had appointed him. And 
David said to Abishai: Now Sheba shall do us more harm 
than Absalom did; take thou thy lord's servants and pursue 
after him. And there went out after him Joab's men, and 
the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men, 
and marched with great speed against Sheba; and when they 
had come to Gibeon, a village forty furlongs distant from 
Jerusalem, Amasa brought a great army with him, and met 
Joab. Joab was girded with a sword, and had his breastplate 
on ; and as he went forth the sword fell out. And Joab said 
to Amasa: Art thou in health, my brother ? And he took 
Amasa by the beard with the right hand to kiss him.^ But 
Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand: 
so Joab smote him therewith in the fifth rib, and he died. 

* So the orientals do to this day. 



188 SAMUEL. 

Then Joab and Abishai, his brother, pursued after Sheba, 
and they came and besieged him in Abel ^ of Beth-maachah. 
They surrounded the town, and prepared to batter down the 
walls. But a wise woman saved the town. Sha called to 
Joab, and entreated him to spare the innocent city and its 
inhabitants, and promised to deliver the traitor Sheba into 
his hand. Then the woman went to the people: and they 
cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri and cast it out to 
Joab. Now Joab blew a trumpet, and they retired from the 
city, every man to his tent. And he returned to Jerusalem 
to the king. And David spoke to the Lord the words of 
this song in the day that the Lord had dehvered him out of 
the hand of all his enemies: 

Fervently do I love Thee, O Lord, m)^ strength, 
Lord, my rock, and my fortress, and my Deliverer, 
My God, my fastness w^herein I hide myself, 
My shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower ! 

The bands of death had compassed me 
And the floods of the abyss came upon me. 
The bands of hades had surrounded me, 
The snares of death assaulted me. 

In my distress I called upon the Lord, 

And unto my God did I cry ; 

He heard my call out of His temple. 

And my cry before Him came into His ears. 

He reached from the height, He seized me. 
He drew me up out of great waters ; 
And bi'ought me forth into a large place ; 
He delivered me, for He delighted in me. 

The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness, 
According to the cleanness of my hands did He recompense me. 
For I have kept the ways of the Lord, 
And have not wickedly departed from my God. 

Towards the good Thou showest Thyself good 

Towards the man of perfect submission Thou showest Thyself yielding. 
Towards him who sanctifies himself Thou showest Thyself pure, 
And towards the perverse Thou showest Thyself froward. 

For Thou, Thou savest the afflicted people, 

And high looks Thou bringest down. 

As for God — spotless is His way, 

The word of the Lord is tried ; 

A shield is He to all who hide in Him. 

For who is a divine being, but the Lord alone. 

And who is a rock save our God ? 

The God, who girded me with strength. 

And made my way perfect, 

Making my feet like hinds' feet. 

And who set me upon my high places. 

Training my hands for war, 

And mine arms bent a bow of brass. 

* A city in the extreme north of Palaetine. 



SAMUEL. 189 

And Thou gavest me also the shield of Thy salvation, 
And Thy right hand upheld me, 
And Thy lowliness made me great. 

I pursued mine enemies and overtook them, 
And turned not back, till they "were consumed. 
I smote them, so that they could not rise, 
They fell under my feet. 

The Lord liveth, and blessed be my Rock, 
And let the God of my salvation be exalted j 
The God, Avho gave me revenges 
And bent back peoples under me. 

Therefore will I praise Thee among the nations, Lord, 

And I Avill sing praises unto Thy name, 

As He, who giveth great deliverance to His king 

And showeth favor to His anointed. 

To David and his seed for ever. 

For though the righteous fall seven times, yet shall he rise up again. — 
-Prov. 24, 16, 



THE FIEST 

BOOK OF THE KINGS. 

OR, 

THE HISTORY OF THE KINGS OF JUDAH AND ISRAEL 



112. ADONIJAH'S CONSPIRACY. SOLOMON PRO- 
CLAIMED KING. 

(1 Kings, 1.) 

After Sheba's death everything returned to the old order, 
and David lived quietly for many years in Jerusalem. But 
when David was old and striken in years, Adonijah, the son 
of Haggith, exalted himself, saying: I will be king ! He 
prepared many chariots and horses, and fifty men to run 
before him. "When his father saw this, he did not reprove 
him, nor did he go so far as to ask: wherefore he did so. 
Moreover he was a beautiful young man, and tall, and the 
king's eldest son after Absalom. He conferred with Joab, 
the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar, the priest: and they, 
following Adonijah, helped him. But Zadok the priest, and 
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and 
the mighty men who belonged to David, were not with 
Adonijah. Now Adonijah had prepared a great feast out- 
side of the city, and had invited all his brothers, and all the 
men of Judah the king's servants: but Nathan the prophet, 
and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his ^ brother 
he called not. Therefore Nathan spoke to Bathsheba, the 
mother of Solomon, saying: Hast thou not heard that 
Adonijah, the son of Haggith, does reign, and David our 
lord knoweth it not ? Now therefore come, let me, I pray 
thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thy own Hfe, 
and the life of thy son Solomon, Go now • quickly to 
king David, and say to him: Didst not thou, my lord, O 
king, swear to thy handmaid, saying: Assuredly Solomon 

^ He knew Solomon to be his rival and appointed to the throne. 



KINGS. 191 

thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne ? 
why then does Adonijah reign ? Behold, while thou yet 
talkest there with the king, I also will come in after thee, 
and confirm thy words. And Bathsheba went in to the 
king into the chamber, and worshipped him, and when she 
had desired leave to speak, she told him all things in the 
manner that Nathan had suggested to her, related what a 
feast Adonijah had made, and who they were whom he had 
invited, and she concluded with the following words: My 
lord, king, the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou 
shouldst tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord 
the king after him. Otherwise it shall come to pass, when 
my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my 
son Solomon shall be counted offenders.' And lo, while she 
yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in, 
and Bathsheba withdrew. He bowed himself before the 
king with his face to the ground, and said: My lord, king, 
hast thou said: Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall 
sit upon my throne ? For he has gone down this day, and has 
slain oxen, and fat cattle, and sheep in abundance, and 
has called all the king's sons, and the captains of the host, 
and Abiathar the priest; and behold, they eat and drink 
before him, and say: God save king Adonijah. But me, 
even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the 
son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, has he not called. 
Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not 
shown it to thy servant, who should sit on the throne of my 
lord the king after him ? Then king David answered and 
said: Call me Bathsheba. When she came into the king's 
presence, the king made oath and said: As the Lord lives, 
that has redeemed my soul out of all distress, even as I 
swore to thee by the Lord God of Israel, saying: Assuredly 
Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my 
throne in my stead, even so will I certainly do this day. 
Then Bathsheba bowed "v\^th her face to the earth, and did 
reverence to the king, and said: Let my lord king David 
live for ever. And king David said: Call me Zadok the 
priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of 
Jehoiada. And they came before the king. Now the king 
said to them: Take with you the servants of your lord, and 
cause Solomon my son to ride upon my own mule, and bring 
him down to Gihon.^ And let Zadok the priest and Nathan 
the prophet anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye 
with the trumpet, and say: God save king Solomon. Then 

^ Would be considered and punished as traitors, for aiming at the kingdom. 
'^ A fountain or brook close by Jerusalem. 



192 KINGS. 

ye shall come up after him, that he may come and sit upon 
my throne ; for he shall be king in my stead, and I have 
appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah. So 
David's servants did as he commanded. They took Solomon 
and made him ride on the king's mule and brought him to 
Gihon: there they anointed him, and blew the trumpet, and 
all the people rejoiced and cried: God save king Solomon! 
And Adonijah, and the men who were with him heard it and 
said : "What meaneth this noise among the people in the city ? 
While they were speaking, Jonathan the son of Abiathar 
came and said to Adonijah: Verily, king David has made 
Solomon king, and moreover, the king's servants came to 
bless our lord king David, saying: God make the name of 
Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater 
than thy throne. And the king bowed himself upon the 
bed, and said: Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who has 
given one to sit on my throne this day, my eyes even see- 
ing it. Hereupon both Adonijah and all his guests rose 
hastily from the feast, and everyone fled to his own 
home. Adonijah, as afraid of the king as the others, took 
hold of the horns of the altar. But Solomon said : If he will 
show himself a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him 
fall to the earth; but if wickedness shall be found in him, he 
shall die. So king Solomon sent, and they brought him 
down from the altar. And he came and bowed himself to 
king Solomon; and Solomon said to him: Go to thy house. 

Wisdom is nothing, and understanding is nothing, and devices are 
nothing, against the Lord. — Prov. 21, 30. 



113. DAVID'S PREPARATIONS FOR THE 

BUILDING OF GOD'S HOUSE. HIS 

DYING CHARGE. 

(1 Chron. 23.) 

David, having thus regulated the civil government of the kingdom, now 
devoted the last days of his life more closely and resolutely to the work 
of God, to build up His house, support His worship, and advance religion. 
For this purpose he made preparations for the building of the house of 
God. He collected all the skilled foreign Avorkmen that could be found 
in the land, to hew stones, and to do all other work. He prepared iron 
and cedar-trees in abundance; for he said: Solomon my son is young 
and tender, and the house that is to be built for the Lord must be 
exceeding magnifical, of fame and of glory tliroughout all countries : I 
will therefore now make preparation for it. iSo David prepared abund- 
antly before his death. Then he called for Solomon his son, and charged 
him to build a house for the Lord God of Israel. And Dnvid said to 
Solomon : My $on, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house unto 
the name of the Lord my God. But the word of the Lord came to me, 
saying : Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars : 



KINGS. 193 

thou shalt not biiild a house to My name. Behold, a son shall be born to 
thee, who shall be a man of rest ; and I will give him rest from all his 
enemies round about : for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give 
peace and quietness unto Israel in his days. He shall build a house for 
My name ; and he shall be My son, and I will be his father ; and I will 
establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever. Now, my son, 
tiic Lord be with thee; and prosper thou, and build the house of the' Lord 
thy God, as he hath said of thee. Now behold, of the gold, the silver, 
the brass and the iron that I have prepared for the house of the Lord, 
there is no limit. Arise, therefore, and be doing, and the Lord be with 
thee. David also commanded all the princes of Israel to help Solomon 
his son. Then he gathered together the princes of Israel and the priests 
and Levites, and regulated the orders of public woi'ship. The Levites 
from thirty years old and upwai'ds, numbered 38,000, of whom 24,000 
were to set forward the work of the temple, 6,000 were judges and officers, 
4,000 porters.i Tj^e singers under Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, 
were divided into twenty-four courses of twelve each.^ Besides these 
were 3,700 singers more. 

And Davi4 assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, 
and the captains of the companies that ministered to the king by course, 
and the captains over the thousands, and over the hundreds, and the stew- 
ards over all the substance of the king, and of his sons, with the officers, 
and with the mighty men, and with all the valiant men, unto Jerusalem. 
Then David the king stood up upon his feet, and said : Hear me, my 
brethren, and my people ! As for me, I had in my heart to build a house 
of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and for the footstool of 
our God, and had made ready for the building. But God said unto me: 
Thou shalt not build a house for My name, because thou hast been a man 
of war, and hast shed blood. Howbeit the Lord God of Israel chose me 
before all the house of my father to be king over Israel for ever : for He 
hath chosen Judah to be the ruler ; and of the house of Judah, the house 
of my father ; and among the sons of my father He liked me to make me 
king over all Israel: And of all my sons (for the Lord hath given me 
many sons), he hath chosen Solomon my sou to sit upon the throne of the 
kingdom of the Lord over Israel. And He said unto me : Solomon thy 
son, he shall build My house and My courts : for I have chosen him to be 
My sou, and I will be his father. Moreover, I will establish his kingdom 
for ever, if he be constant to do My commandments and My judgments, as 
at this day. Now therefore in the sight of all Israel, the congregation of 
the Lord, and in the audience of our God, keep and seek for all the com- 
mandments of the Lord your God : that ye may possess this good laud, 
aud leave it for an inheritance for your children after you for ever. And 
thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve Him 
with a perfect heart, and with a willing mind : for the Lord searcheth all 
hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts : if thou 
seek Him, He will be found ; but if thou forsake Him, He will cast 
thee off for ever. Take heed now ; for the Lord hath chosen thee to build 
a house for the sanctuary : be strong, and do it. Then David gave to 
Solomon his son the pattern for the temple, aud its porches aud buildings, 
an account of the materials he had amassed, and the order of Priests and 
Levites which he had fixed ; he thus concluded his charge to the young 
king : Be strong, and of good courage, and do it : fear not, nor be dis- 
mayed, for the Lord God, even my God, will be with thee; He Avill not 
fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the 
service of the house of the Lord. 

1 Keepers of the doors, both "by day and night. 

2 Each son of Asaph, Jeduthuu, and Heman, was at the head of a band of twelve 
skilled musicians. 



194 KINGS. 

Then David exhorted the people, after his own example, to consecrate 
of their substance to the completion of God's house. Because I have set 
my affection to the house of my God, I have given of my own property 
over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, three thousand 
talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined 
silver; who, then, is willing to consecrate his service this day to the 
Lord 1 These words of David met with a hearty response from the 
people. They offered willingly and rejoiced,, because with perfect heart 
they offered to the Lord ; and David the king also rejoiced with great 
joy. Therefore David blessed the Lord before all the congregation, and 
he said : Blessed be Thou, Lord God of Israel our father, for ever and 
ever. Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power and the glory, 
and the victory, and the majesty ; for all that is in the heaven and in the 
earth is Thine; Thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and Thou art exalted as 
head above all. Both riches and honor come of Thee, and Thou reignest 
over all ; and in Thy hand is power and might ; and in Thy hand it 
is to make great, and to give strength unto all. Noav therefore, our God, 
we thank Thee, and praise Thy glorious name. But who am I, and what 
is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort ? 
for all things come of Thee, and of Thy own have Ave given Thee. For 
we are strangers before Thee, and sojournei's, as Avere all our fathers : our 
days on the earth are as a shadoAV, and there is none abiding. O Lord our 
God, all this store that Ave have prepared to build Thee a house for Thy 
holy name, cometh of Thy hand, and is all Thy OAvn. I knoAV also, 
my God ; that Thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As 
for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have Avillintrly offered all these 
things : and noAv have I seen Avith joy Thy people, Avhich are present here, 
to offer Avillingly unto Thee. O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of 
Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the imagination of the thoughts 
of the heart of Thy people, and prepare their heart to Thee : and give to 
Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep Thy commandments. Thy testi- 
monies, and Thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the 
palace, for Avhich I have made pi-ovision. 

Then David said to all the congregation : Noav bless the Lord your 
God. And all the congregation blessed the Lord God of their fathers, 
and bowed doAvn their heads, and Avorshipped the Lord, and the king. 
And they sacrificed sacrifices and offered burnt offerings to the Lord, 
on the morroAV after that day, even a thousand bullocks, a thousand 
rams, and a thousand lambs, Avith their drink offerings, and sacrifices in 
abundance for all Israel : and did eat and drink before the Lord on that 
day Avith great gladness. And they made Solomon the son of David king 
the second time, and anointed him to the Lord to be the chief governor, 
and Zadok to be priest. Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord 
as king instead of David his father, and prospered ; and all Israel obeyed 
him. And all the princes, and the mighty men, and all the sons likeAV'ise 
of king David, submitted themselves to Solomon the king. 

Thine, O God, is the greatness, and the poAver, and the glory, and the 
victory, and the majesty ; Thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and Thou art 
exalted as head above all. — Chron. 29, 11. , 



114. DAVID'S DEATH. 

(1 Kings, 2.) 

Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; 
and he charged Solomon his son, saying: I go the way of all 



KINGS. 195 

the earth; be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man. 
Keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in His ways, to 
keep His statutes, as it is written in the law of Moses, that 
thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever 
thou turnest thyself. That the Lord may continue His word 
which He spoke concerning me, saying: If thy children take 
heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth, with all their 
heart, and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee (said 
He) a man on the throne of Israel. 

Be thou also mindful of the transgressions of Joab, what 
he did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the 
hosts of Israel; to Abner, the son of Ner, and to Amasa, 
the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war 
in peace. Shimei also, the son of G-era, who had cruelly 
insulted me, when, in my flight, I was going to Mahanaim, 
to whom I promised impunity, — do to them accordiilg to thy 
wisdom, and seek but for some just occasion, and punish 
them. But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai, the Gil- 
eadite, whom, in order to gratify me, thou shalt have in great 
honor, and take great care of, for we have to repay to them 
the debt of gratitude for which their generous father de- 
clined to receive anything. So David slept with his fathers, 
in a good old age, full of days, riches and honor, and was 
buried in the city of David. 

Josephus said of him: David was of an excellent char- 
acter, endowed with all the virtues that were desirable in a 
king; for he was a man of valor in a very extraordinary 
degree, and went readily and first of all into dangers, which 
are good qualities, peculiarly fit for kings. He was of very 
great abilities in understanding, and apprehension of present 
and future circumstances, when he was to manage any affairs. 
He was prudent, moderate, and kind to such as were under 
any calamities; he was righteous and humane. And the 
time that David reigned over Israel was forty years : seven 
years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty -three years reigned 
he in Jerusalem. 

Solomon carried into execution all the last commands of 
his father. Adonijah, who went about treacherous plans, 
suffered death. When Joab heard of it, he was greatly 
afraid, suspecting, not without reason, that he was in danger, 
on account of his favor to Adonijah. He fled to the altar, 
but, upon Solomon's command, he was slain there. As to 
Shimei, he was ordered, under pain of death, not to leave 
Jerusalem; but three years afterwards, when he heard that 
two of his servants had run away from him, and were in Gath, 
he went for them in haste. On his return he was charged 
with his disobedience, and put to death. The high-priest 



106 KINGS. 

7M)iatliar, who had linked himself with the party of Adoni- 
jah, was f.leposed and banished to Anatath^^ and Zadok was 
put in his place. 



lir). THE BOOK OF PSALMS. 

To the many qualities by which David was distinguished, his sacred 
hiogrnpher adds one which, at all periods, has endeared David's name and 
memorv to posterity. 

He calls him "the sweet Psalmist of Israel ; " and a? a psalmist and in- 
S])ired r< lij^ious poet he was, and will ever be, cherished by every pious 
heart We have already s(^en examples of David's poetical gifts in his 
beautiful elegy on Saul and Jonathan, and elsewhere in connection with 
his personal history. But most of his songs, together with those of other 
devout bards, have been preserved to us in the Book of Psalms,^ or the 
Psalter. 

The Book of Psalms is a collection of 150 religious songs, which, 
according to the tradition handed down in the titles or inscriptions pre- 
fixed to iOO of them, are ascribed to different authors in far different ages, 
ranging from Moses, the traditional author of Psalm 90, down to the 
author of the hymn to be sung at the dedication of tl^ Temple, or the 
psalms which speak of the captivity as ended. 

David's name is prefixed to seventy-three psalms. To Solomon two 
are attributed (72, 1 '27),^ Twelve psalms bear the name of Assapfi, cele- 
brated as David's chief musician and an inspired psalmist (comp. page 193). 
Eleven p.salms are described as belonging to the "sons of Korah," — most 
likely the descendants of the rebel who perished in the wilderness. With 
respect to the fifty anonymous^ psalms, some were probably written by 
David, or belong to his time. The greater number are later, and belong 
to the period shortly before and after the captivity.* 

The whole is divided into five books, in imitation, as some think, of the 
Pentateuch. I., Psalm 1-41 ; II., 42-72; III., 73-89; IV., 90-106; V., 
1 07-1 50. This distribution was most likely made gradually. The psalms 
of the first book were gathered by David himself, most of them being 
inscribed with his name. 

To this first book a second was afterward added, and then a third, and 
a fourth, and a fifth. The first three books contain for the most part 
psalms of David and of singers of his time ; the last two embrace psalms 
of later times.^ 

* A city of Benjamin allotted to the priests. 

2 The present Hebrew name of the book is Tehillim, "Praises,'" or more fully, 
D'Snri "^30 "The Book of Praises." The LXX entitled them *dA/xoi, or 
" Psalms," from SkaAAeiv, to play upon a stringed instrument. 

^ Ps. 72 was written rather for him than by him. 

4 In the Talmud they are called orphan Psalms. 

sTo the Inscriptions, and Titles of several Psalms great obscurity belongs. 
They refer to the poem itself, characterizing, perhaps, its uatiiro; sometimes tliey 
are accompanied by the name of the author and the liistorical occasion of the 
composition. Others are musical or liturgical notices. The word Selafi, occur- 
rmix seventy times in the Psalms and three times in Ilahakkuk, denotes, according 
to Gesenius, a ;;a?<^A intimating that the singing should cease, and the stringed 
instruments be introduced. 

* In regard to their coutents or their internal character they are thus classified by 
De Wctte : 

1 . Hymns in praise of God. 

2. National Psalms. 



KINGS, 197 



116. SOLOMON KING. C. E. 1015-975. HIS 
DHEAM. HIS WISE JUDGMENT. 

(1 Kings, 3.) 

Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David 
his father. In Gibeon, where he had gone to sacrifice, the 
Lord appeared to him in a dream by night, and said: Ask 
what I shall give thee ! And Solomon said : Thou hast shown 
to Thy servant David my father great mercy, according as 
he walked before Thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in 
uprightness of heart with Thee; and Thou hast kept for him 
this great kindness, that Thou hast given him a son to sit on 
his throne, as it is this day. And now, Lord my God, 
Thou hast made Thy servant king instead of David my 
father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go 
out or come in. But Thy servant is in the midst of Thy peo- 
ple which Thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be 
numbered nor counted for multitude. Give, therefore, Thy 
servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I 
may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge 
this Thy so great a people ? And the speech pleased the 
Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. And God said to 
him : Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked 
for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, 
nor hast asked the life of thy enemies ; but hast asked for 
thyself understanding to discern judgment; behold, I have 
done according to thy word: lo, I have given thee a wise 
and an understanding heart; so that there was none like 
thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like to 
thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not 
asked, both riches, and honor; so that there shall not be any 

3. Psalms of Zion and of the temple. 

4. Psalms relating to tJie king. 

5. Psalms containing the supplications and complaints of the pious in distress. 

6. Religious and moral pscUrns. 
For instance : 

1. Psalms 8, 18, 19, 29, 23. 46, 48. 65. 76, 93, 104, 136, 145, 147. 

2. 78, 105. 106. 114. 

3. 15. 24, 68. 81. 87. 132, 134, 135. 

4. 2. 20. 21. 45, 72, 110. 

5. (a) Personal, 7, 11. 22. 55. 56, 109. 

(b) National, 44. 74. 80, 137. 

(c) Reflections on the wickedness of the Avorld. 10. 12. 14, 36. 

(d) Didactic Psalms on the retributions of life, 37, 49, 73. 
re ) Thauksirivinc: for deliverance, 34, 40. 

G. Rclijrious and moral psalms. 

(a) Odes to God. 90. 139. 

(b) Esprossinc: religious conWction. hope, confidence, etc., 23, 91, 121,127,128. 

(c) Development of religious or moral ideas. 1, 133. 

(d) Poems containing leligious doctrine, 32, 50. 

(e) Proverbs in an alphabetical series, 119. 



198 KINGS. 

among the kings like to thee all thy days. And if thou 
wilt walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My com- 
mandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will 
lengthen thy days. And Solomon awoke; and behold, it 
was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem, and stood before 
the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt- 
offerings, and offered peace-offerings, and made a feast to 
all his servants. 

At that time there came two women to the king, and stood 
before him. And the one woman said: my lord, I and 
this woman dwell together in one house. To each of us a 
child was born, the one within three days of the other. We 
were alone within the house, and the child of the other 
woman died; because she lay upon it. And she arose at 
midnight, took my son from beside me, while thy handmaid 
slept, and removed him to herself, and laid her dead child 
in my arms. "When I arose in the morning to give my child 
suck, behold, it was dead; but when I had considered it care- 
fully, I did not find my own, but saw the woman's dead 
child lying by me. And the other woman denied that she 
had done what was charged upon her, and said: Nay; but 
the living is my son, and the dead is thy son. And this said : 
No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son. Thus 
they spoke before the king. Then said the king: The one 
says: This is my son that lives and thy son is the dead; and 
the other says: Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is 
the living. Bring me a sword! Divide the living child in 
two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. But 
she who was the real mother of the living child cried out, for 
her bowels yearned upon her son: my lord ! give her the 
living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said: Let 
it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it. Then the king 
answered and said: Give her the living child, and in no wise 
slay it: she is the mother thereof. And all Israel heard of 
the judgment which the king had judged, and they feared 
the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, 
to do judgment. 

Happy the man who finds wisdom, yea, the man who gets understand- 
ing.— rrov. 3, 13. 



117. SOLOMON'S GREATNESS AND WISDOM. 
COVENANT BETWEEN SOLOMON AND HIRAM. 

(1 Kiugs, 4. 5.) 

So Solomon was king over all Israel. He reigned over 



KINGS. 199 

all kingdoms from the river Euphrates to the land of the 
Philistines, and to the border of Egypt: they brought pre- 
sents, and served Solomon all the days of his life. There 
was peace in his kingdom, and Judah and Israel dwelt 
safely; every man under his vine and under his fig-tree, 
from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all the days of Solomon. And 
God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding 
much, and largeness of heart, so that his wisdom excelled 
the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and of 
Egypt, and his fame was in all nations round about. He 
composed books of odes and songs, 1,005; of parables and 
proverbs, 3,000; for he spoke a parable upon every sort of 
tree, from the hyssop that springs out of the wall to the cedar, 
that is in Lebanon; and also about beasts, about all sorts of 
living creatures, whether upon the earth, or in the seas, or 
in the air. And there came of all people to hear the wisdom 
of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of 
his wisdom. 

Also Hiram^ the king of Tyre, when he heard that Solomon 
succeeded to his father's kingdom, was very glad of it, for 
he was a friend of David's. So he sent ambassadors to him, 
saluted him, and congratulated him on the present happy 
state of his affairs, upon which Solomon sent him an epistle, 
as follows: 

SOLOMON TO KING HIRAM. 

Thou knowest that David my father could not build 
a house to the name ot the Lord his God, for the wars 
which were about him on every side, until the Lord put his 
enemies under the soles of his feet. But now the Lord my 
God has given me rest on every side, so that there is neither 
adversary nor evil occurrence. And behold, I intend to 
build a house to the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord 
spoke to David my father, saying: Thy son, whom I will set 
upon thy throne in thy stead, he shall build a house to My 
name. Therefore I desire thee to send some of thy ser- 
vants with mine to Mount Lebanon, to cut down timber; for 
the Sidonians are more skillful than our people in the cutting 
of wood. As for wages to the hewers of wood, I will pay 
whatsoever price thou shalt determine to be due. 

And when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced 
greatly, and said: Blessed be the Lord this day, who has 
given to David a wise son over this great people. 

Hiram wrote back this answer: 

HIRAM TO KING SOLOMON. 

I have considered the things for which thou sentest to me: 



200 KINGS. 

and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and 
concerning timber of fir. My servants shall bring them 
down from Lebanon to the sea: and I will convey them by 
sea in floats to the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will 
cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive 
them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food 
for my household. 

So Hiram gave Solomon cedar-trees and fir-trees according 
to all his desire ; and Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand 
measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty 
measures of pure oil: thus Solomon gave to Hiram year by 
year. And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as He promised 
him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and 
they two made a league together. And king Solomon com- 
manded, and they brought great costly and hewed stones, to 
lay the foundation of the house. Solomon's and Hiram's 
builders, and the Gebalites ^ hewed and prepared the timber 
and stones to build the house. 

The fear of the Lord is the beginninf^ of Avisdom; a good understand- 
ing have all they, that do His commandments. — Ps. Ill, 10. 



118. THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE. 

(1 Kings, 5-7. 2 Chron., 2-5.) 

And Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in the 480th year 
from'the departure from Egypt and the fourth of his reign, and finished it 
in seven and a half years. He chose for the site of it Mount Moriah,'^ in 
the south-eastern quarter of Jerusalem. 

The Temple, properly so called, was erected of thick walls of hewn 
stones, made ready before they were brought thither, so that there was 
neither hammer, nor axe, nor any other iron tool heard in the house, 
while it was building. It was sixty cubits in length, twenty in breadth, 
and thirty in height. ^ In general it was constructed after the .'similitude 
of the Tabernacle, except that it was built on a larger scale, with exactly 

1 Inhabitants of Gebal, a Phoenician city between Beyroot and Tripolis, which 
is now linown as Jebeil. 

2 The height where David had recently erected an altar to stay the pestilence, 
and where, according to tradition, Abraham was to oft'er his son. It stood on the 
boundary line of Judah and Benjamin. According to Jewish authorities, the 

freater space of the courts was in Judah, but the temple and altar in Benjamin, 
n order to Min the necessary area for the house, the rugged top of the moinuain 
was levelled with immense labor; then walls of huge square stones were built up 
perpendicularly from the bottom of the valley around the mountain, and the space 
between tilled up with earth. Of these walls there are still some roniaius. 

2 Tire cubit, or the ancient ammah (n"^X), has been estimated as somewhat less 

than a foot (Saalschiitz), and again as between 19 and 20 inches (Theniuif). a differ- 
ence of nearly 8 inches. Solomon's Temple was. therefore, not so remarkable for 
its size as for its magnificence ; lor. even according to the highest estimate for the 
ammah, the Temple was really a small building, less than i20 feet long, and less 
than 35 broad; in other words, it was not solarge as one of the middle-sized 
churches of our own land. Ancient worship was mainly in the open air; atul tem- 
ples were viewed as shrines for the Deity and His priests, not as buildings in 
which worshippers were to congregate. lieucc their comparatively email size. 



KINGS. 201 

double the dimensions of its pattern, the Tabernacle,^ and it excelled in 
the quantity of its vessels and furniture, and by having chambers built 
about the sanctuary for the abode of the priests and attendants and the 
keeping of treasures and stores. 

Having built the walls of the house, Solomon covered the inside with 
boards of cedar up to the ceiling ; but the floor of the house he covered with 
planks of fir. The cedar was carved with gourds and opening flower-buds : 
all was cedar within; there was no stone seen. 

He divided the house into two parts : the Holy of Holies, and the Holy 
or Sanctuary. The Holy of Holies, in the interior part, was twenty cubits 
in length, twenty in breadth, and twenty in height, and he overlaid it with 
gold. And he separated the Holy of Holies from the Sanctuary by a par- 
tition of cedar wood, out of which was cut a door-place, wherein folding- 
doors of olive-tree, richly carved and overlaid with gold, Avere put. A 
veil of blue and purple and scarlet, with the most curious floAvers wrought 
upon it, Avas drawn before those doors — which were most probably always 
open — and hung upon golden chains. 

The Ark of the Covenant, with the Mercy-Seat (comp. page 67), was 
placed, as of old, in the Holy of Holies, and contained the two tablets of 
the Covenant. Solomon made tAvo clierubim,^ each ten cubits high, and 
overlaid them Avith gold. Their wings Avere five cubits each : from the 
uttermost part of the one wing to the uttermost part of the other was ten 
cubits. They Avere placed upon their feet, Avith their faces inward ; one 
pair of their Avings reached the Avails behind them, and another pair miet 
above the Ark. 

The Holy or Sanctuary was forty cubits long by twenty Avide, and was 
also lined Avith Avood-work, richly carved and overlaid with gold. Also 
its floor was OA-^erlaid Avith plates of gold.* In the Holy stood : 

The Golden Altar of Incense. In place of the single candlestick, 
which Avas in the Tabernacle, there Avere 

Ten Candlesticks of gold, with their lamps and flowers, fiA-'e on the 
right side of the Holy and five on the left. There Avere also 

Ten Golden Tables, five on the right side and five on the left. 

The hundred bowls, and th« lamps, and snuffers, and basins, and 
censers, and spoons, and all the vessels for the house of God were of pure 
gold. 

In front of the Sanctuary was a beautiful Porch. Folding doors of fir 
or cypress, having posts of oliA^e wood, occupied the entrance. The Porch 
Avas twenty cubits AA'ide and ten cubits long, and one hundred and tAventy 
cubits in height, hence a kind of tOAA^er, Avhich formed the entrance. On 
each side of the Porch Avas a pillar — probably of bronze — about eighteen 
cubits in height, Avith a chapiter or capital of five cubits, and tAvelve cubits 
in circumference. These pillars, called Jachin (stability, literally : he 
Avill establish), on the right or south, and Boaz (strength,* literally : in it 
is strength), on the left or north, were curiously ornamented with lily-work, 
net-Avork or chequer-Avork, chain-AVork, and pomegranates. 

The Avhole building Avas surrounded Avith Courts, the places of public 

1 The Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle Avas a cube, 10 cubits each AA'ay ; in the 
Temple it was a cube of 20 cubits. The Holy or Sanctuary Avas 10 cubits wide by 
20 long and 10 high in the Tabernacle. In the Temple all these dimensions Avere 
exactly double. The Avails Avere 10 cubits high in the one and 20 in the other. 
The Avhole height of the Tabernacle Avas 15, that of the Temple 30 cubits. 

2 Nobody can tell, or even conjecture, Avhat Avas the shape of these cherubim. 
3Josephus said: To say all in one word, he left no part of the Temple, neither 

internal nor external, but what was covered Avith gold. 

* The pillars contributed, according to their names, most probably to the stability 
and strength of the structure, especially to the support of the lofty porch. They 
Avere used besides for ornament, and may have been also emblematical, i, e., 
expreg&ing some symbolical meaning. 



202 KINGS. 

worship. Here, under the open air, were celebrated the great public and 
national rites, the processions, the sacrifices. The inner court, or Court 
OF THE Priests, just before the east end of the Temple, was built with 
three rows of hewed stone, and a row of cedar beams. According- to Jo- 
sephus, the wall of this court Avas three cubits high, that the people might 
see over the top of it what the priests were doing. In this court stood 

The Brazen Altar, twenty cubits long, as many broad, and ten high. 
In front of the altar was a raised scaffold of brass, where King iSolomon 
stood or sat when he attended the public sacrifices. 

The Brazen Sea,i was at the south-east corner of the court of priests. 
This immense brazen laver was five cubits in height, ten in diameter, and 
thirty in circumference ; the thickness of the metal was one hand breadth, 
and the brim of it was wrought with lilies, and below the brim it was 
enriched with varied devices. This great basin was placed upon the backs 
of twelve oxen, in allusion to the twelve tribes, three looking toward each 
quarter of the compass. It Avas to hold water (2,000, or, according to 
Chronicles, 3,000 baths^) for the priests to wash their hands and their feet, 
whenever they should go into the Temple, or offer up sacrifices on the 
altar. 

There were besides ten Layers of brass, Avhich were set upon Avheels, 
and could be moved from one place to another, used for the cleansing of 
the sacrifices. 

Besides this inner court, there was still another great court, or outer 
court, called the Court of the People; for into this court every clean 
Israelite might enter. This court was separated from that into which the 
Gentiles were afterward admitted. To each court the ascent Avas by steps, 
so that the platform of the inner court Avas on a higher level than that of the 
outer. The whole esplanade Avas surrounded by a solid Avail of considera- 
ble height. 

These great works were completed by HebrcAV and Tyrian artificers, 
under the superintendence of Hiram (or Huram, according to Chronicles), 
the son of an Israelii ish mother and a Tyrian father, Avho, like Bezaleel 
and Aholiab of old, Avas filled Avith the spirit of God, and produced all 
that the Lord had commanded with rare and perfect skill,— a house Avith 
its furniture probably richer in noble magnificence than the Avorld had 
elseAvhere possessed. 

Solomon Avas more than seven years in doing the Avork, until all of it 
was finished. And now Solomon brought in all the things that David 
his father had dedicated, and he put the silver, and the gold, and all the 
instruments among the treasures of the house of God. 

Honor the Lord Avith thy substance. — Prov. 3, 9. 

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, Avith all thy soul, 
and with all thy might. — 5 Mos. 6, 5. 



119. DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE. 

(1 Kings, S.) 

After this King Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, 
and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of 
the children of Israel, to Jerusalem, that they miglit bring 
up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of 
David, which is Zion. And all the men of Israel flocked to 

» It was called a sea for ite largcnees.— Josephus. 
''The bath equalling 8J gallons. 



KINGS. 203 

king Solomon at the Feast of Tabernacles in the seventh 
month. And when all the elders of Israel were assembled, 
the priests took up the ark, and brought it up, with the tab- 
ernacle and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle; 
they and the Levites brought all up. Then king Solomon, 
and all the congregation, that were assembled to him, stood 
before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be 
told nor numbered for multitude. And the priests brought 
in the ark of the covenant to its place, into the Holy of 
Holies, under the wings of the cherubim. There was noth- 
ing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put 
there at Horeb, when the Lord made a covenant with the 
children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. 
And it came to pass, when the priests had come out of the 
holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord. 
And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the con- 
gregation of Israel: and all the congregation of Israel stood. 
And he said: Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who spoke 
with His mouth to David my father, and has with His hand 
fulfilled it. Then Solomon placed himself before the altar 
of the Lord in the presence ^ of all the congregation of 
Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven, and said : 
Lord God of Israel ! there is no God like Thee, in heaven 
above, or on earth beneath, who keepest Thy covenant and 
mercy with Thy servants that walk before Thee with all 
their heart: Therefore now, Lord God of Israel, let Thy word 
be verified which Thou-spokest to Thy servant David my 
father, saying: There shall not fail thee a man in My sight 
to sit on the throne of Israel; so that thy children take heed 
to their way, that they walk before Me as thou hast walked 
before Me. But will God indeed dwell on the earth ? 
Behold the heaven and heaven of heavens ^ cannot contain 
Thee, how much less this House that I have built. Yet 
have Thou respect to the prayer of Thy servant, and to his 
supplication, Lord, my God, that Thy eyes may be open 
toward this House night and day, even toward the place of 
which Thou hast said : My name shall be there. And hearken 
Thou to the supplication of Thy servant, and of Thy people 
Israel, when they shall pray toward this place; and hear 
Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place; and when Thou hearest, 
forgive. If any man trespass against his neighbor; then 
hear Thou in heaven, and do, and judge Thy servants, con- 
demning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head, and 

' On the brazen scaflFold raised in front of the altar. 

^ The heaven of heavens seems to mean the heaven in its most extended com- 
pass ; for God is no local or finite deity, but is ever present everywhere. 



204 KINGS. 

justifying the righteous, to give him according to his 
righteousness, ^hen Thy people Israel be smitten down 
before the enemy, because they have sinned against Thee, 
and shall turn again to Thee, and confess Thy name, and 
pray, and make supplication to Thee in this house: then hear 
Thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy people Israel. 
When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they 
have sinned against Thee; if they pray toward this place, 
and confess Thy name, and turn from their sin, when Thou 
afflictest them: then hear Thou in heaven, and forgive the 
sin of Thy servants, and of Thy people Israel, and give rain 
upon Thy land, which Thou hast given to Thy people for an 
inheritance. If there be in the land famine, if there be pes- 
tilence, blasting, mildew, or locusts, or if there be caterpil- 
lars; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities, 
whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; what 
prayer and supplication soever be made by any man or by 
all Thy people Israel, spreading forth their hands toward 
this House: then hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place. 
Moreover, concerning a stranger, who is not of Thy people 
Israel, but comes out of a far country for Thy name's sake; 
hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place, and do according 
to all for which the stranger calls to Thee; that all people of the 
earth may know Thy name, to fear Thee, as do Thy people 
Israel; and that they may know that this House which I 
have built is called by Thy name.^ If Thy people go out to 
battle against their enemy, whithersoever Thou slialt send 
them, and shall pray to the Lord toward the city which 
Thou hast chosen, and toward the house that I have built 
for Thy name: then hear Thou in heaven their prayer and 
their supplication, and maintain their cause. If they sin 
against Thee (for there > is no man that sins not), and Thou 
be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that 
they carry them away captives to the land of the enemy, far 
or near; yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land 
whither they were carried captives, and repent and make 
supplication to Thee in the land of those who carried 
them captives, and return to Thee with all their heart, and 
with all their soul, then hear Thou their prayer and their 
supplication in heaven Thy dwelling-place, and maintain 
their cause; and forgive Thy people that have sinned against 
Thee, and all their transgressions, wherein they have trans- 
gressed against Thee, and give them compassion before those 
who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on 
them: for they are Thy people, and Thy inheritance, which 

1 The heathen, when their prayers directed towards the Temple, arc ffrantod, 
will have a full assurance that God is present in the building in some very special 
way. 



KINGS. 205 

Thou hast brought forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the 
furnace of iron. 

When Solomon had made an end of praying to the 
Lord, he rose from his knees, and turned about to the 
people and blessed them with a loud voice, saying: Blessed 
be the Lord, who has given rest to His people Israel, 
according to all that He promised: there has not failed 
one word of all His good promise, which He promised 
by the hand of Moses His servant. The Lord our God be 
\Yiih us, as He was with our fathers: let Him not leave us, 
nor forsake us: That He may incline our hearts to Him, to 
walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments, and 
His statutes, and His judgments, which He commanded our 
fathers. And let these my words wherewith I have made 
supplication before the Lord, be nigh to the Lord our God 
day and night, that He maintain the cause of His servant, 
and the cause of His people Israel at all times: That all the 
people of the earth may know that the Lord is God, and 
that there is none else. Let your heart therefore be perfect 
with the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes, and to keep 
His commandments, as at this day. Thereupon the king, 
and all Israel with him, olfered the sacrifices of dedication to 
the Lord, twenty-two thousand oxen, and a hundred and 
twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of 
Israel dedicated the house of the Lord. At that time Solo- 
mon held a feast of dedication seven days, and all Israel 
with him, and seven day^ more for the feast of tabernacles, 
even fourteen days. After the feast of tabernacles was over, 
Solomon sent the people away: and they blessed the king, 
and went to their homes joyful and glad of heart for all the 
goodness that the Lord had done for David His servant, and 
for Israel His people. 

If I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord Avill not hear me. — Ps. G6, 18. 
The Lord is good, His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to 
all generations. — Ps. 100, 5. 

120. GOD APPEARED TO SOLOMON THE SECOND 
TIME. THE QUEEN OF SHEBA. 

(1 Kings, 9. 10.) 

The Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, as He 
had appeared to him at Gibeon, and said: I have heard thy 
prayer and thy supplication which thou hast made before Me: 
I have hallowed this House, which thou hast built, to put My 
name there for ever; and My eyes and My heart shall be 
there perpetually. If thou wilt walk before Me as David 
thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, 



206 KINGS. 

to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt 
keep My statutes and My judgments: then I will establish 
the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I prom- 
ised to David thy father, saying: There shall not fail thee a 
man upon the throne of Israel. But if you shall wholly turn 
away from following Me, and go and serve other gods, and 
worship them: then will I cut off Israel out of the land 
which I have given them; and this House which I have hal- 
lowed for My name, will I cast out of My sight; and Israel 
shall be a proverb and a by- word among all people. 

Besides the temple, Solomon built a palace for himself, which 
occupied thirteen years in its erection. At the back of this 
palace he built a portico, within which was placed a throne 
whereon he sat to administer justice. This throne was made 
of ivory, and overlaid with the best gold. Six steps led up 
to it. On each side were stays, and two lions stood beside 
the stays, so that upon its six steps were twelve lions: there 
was not the like made in any kingdom,' He built also the 
House of the Forest of Lebanon,^ which was the royal 
armory. Here were kept besides weapons of war those 
ornamental arms which were used on state occasions. Here 
hung glittering on the walls the two hundred targets'^ of beaten 
gold, of 600 shekels each; and 300 golden shields,^ of three 
pounds to each shield. All the cups that Solomon drank 
out of and all the vessels that were in his house were of 
pure gold, none were of silver. 

"When Solomon had completed all in twenty years, he 
rewarded with rich presents Hiram the King of Tyre who 
had contributed a great deal of gold, cedar, and cypress- wood, 
and had aided him in the building of the temple and other 
edifices. He also granted him cities of Galilee, twenty in 
number, that lay not far from Tyre. Solomon also built and 
fortified many cities, and he extended the commerce of the 
country by having a navy of ships at Ezion-geher at the head 
of the eastern arm of the Red Sea. This fleet was manned 
with a mixed crew of Hebrews and Tyrians. It sailed to 
Ophir * and brought thence in gold four hundred and twenty 
talents to the king. Besides this a vast trade was carried on 
in corn, wine, oil, timber, gems, spices, Egyptian horses and 
linen. 

* Josephus adds to the description of Solomon's throne here triven. that the seat 
was supported by a golden ox or bull, with its head turned over its shoulder. 

2 So called because it was little more than a roof upheld by a number ot columns, 
each of which was a cedar-tree. 

* Targets^ long shields, protecting the whole body; Shields, bucklers of a small 
size. 

*A place in the Indian Ocean, on the eastern coast of Arabia. According to 
others, near to Souakin, on the coast ol Nubia, and in the neighborhood of the 
Nubian gold mines. 



KINGS. 207 

In the course of this traflBc Solomon's wealth and wisdom 
became widely known. The splendor of his court attracted 
the admiration of other monarchs. And people from all the 
earth came to Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had 
put into his heart. And every man brought his present; 
vessels of gold and vessels of silver, and garments, and 
armor, and spices, and harness, and mules, a rate year by 
year. Among others who were thus drawn to the king was 
the queen of Sheha} She journeyed to Jerusalem to prove 
Solomon with difficult questions. Followed by a long train 
of camels, which were laden with spices and gold, and 
precious stones, she appeared before him, and proposed to 
him those questions she had had in her mind when she 
started. Solom.on answered them all. And when the queen 
had seen all Solomon's wisdom, the splendor of his court, 
and the temple service, she was almost overwhelmed by the 
sight. And she said to the king: It was a true report that 
I heard in my owti land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. 
Howbeit, I believed not the words, until I came and my own 
eyes had seen it, and behold, the half was not told me: thy 
wisdom and prosperity exceeds the reports which I heard. 
Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, who stand 
continually before thee, and hear thy wisdom. Blessed be 
the Lord thy God, who delighted in thee, to set thee on the 
throne of Israel: because the Lord loved Israel for ever, 
therefore made He thee king, to do judgment and justice. 
And she gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of 
gold, and of spices a very great store, and precious stones: 
there came no mxore such an abundance of spices as the queen 
of Sheba gave to king Solomon. In return king Solomon 
gave to the queen all her desire, whatsoever she asked, '^ be- 
sides that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So 
she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants. 

A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches ; and better is 
good will than silver and gold. — Prov. 22, 1. 



121. SOLOMON'S SIN. HIS ENEMIES AND DEATH. 

(1 Kings, 11.) 

But king Solomon loved many strange women, together 
with the daughter of Pharaoh; of the nations concerning 

» Far to the south on the shores of the Arabian Gulf (probably the modern El- 
Yemen). According: to others. Nubia, of which a capital city was Seboua. Jo- 
Eephus calls her Queen of Egypt and Ethiopia. 

'^Asking for presents is common in the East, and is practised by persons of all 
ranks. A return, however, is made as a matter ol course tor presents received in 
this way. 



208 KINGS. 

wliicTi the Lord said to the children of Israel: Ye shall not 
go in to them, neither shall they come in to you; for surely 
they will turn away your heart after their gods. When Solo- 
mon was old ^ his wives turned away his heart after other 
gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, 
as was the heart of David his father. He went after Ashto- 
reth, the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom, the 
abomination of the Ammonites, after Moloch, Chemosh, and 
other idols and did evil in the sight of the Lord. And the 
Lord was angry with Solomon, and said to him: Forasmuch 
as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept My covenant 
and My statutes which I have commanded thee, I will surely 
rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. 
Notwithstanding, in thy days I will not do it for David thy 
father's sake; but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 
Howbeit, I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will 
give one^ tribe to thy son, for David my servant's sake, and 
for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen. In the first place 
the Lord stirred up an adversary to Solomon, Eadad the 
Edomite, of the king's seed in Edom, who had found refuge 
in Egypt, when his country was taken by Joab, where he 
had grown up and married the sister of Pharaoh's wife. 
Hadad allied himself to a powerful f ree-booter named Rezon, 
who had run away from Hadadezer, king of Zobah, his mas- 
ter. These two succeeded in wresting from the dominion of 
Solomon, Syria, Damascus, and a part of Edom. 

Jerohoarriy-^ also the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite, who was 
Solomon's servant, lifted up his hand against the king. He 
had an expectation of rising from a prophecy made to him 
long before. Solomon had made him superintendent of all 
the forced labor exacted from his tribe — the tribe of Ephraim. 
About that time as Jeroboam was once going out of Jerusa- 
lem, a prophet of the city of Shiloh, whose name was Aliijah, 
met him and saluted him. Jeroboam was wearing a new 
garment, and they two were alone in the field. Ahijah tak- 
ing hold of Jeroboam's new garment rent it into twelve 
pieces, saying: Take thee ten pieces; for thus says the Lord, 
the God of Israel: Behold I will rend the kingdom out of 
the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee. Be- 
cause they have forsaken Me, and have worshipped Aslito- 
reth, the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemoth, the god of the 
Moabites, and Milcom, the god of the children of Ammon, 

' Old, ahout fifty or lifty-fivc, for he could not have been more than about sixty 
at his death. 

2 Little Benjamin was looked upon as absorbed in Judah, so as not to be really 
a tribe in the same sense as the others. 

3 D;?3n^ 



KINGS. 209 

and have not walked in My ways, to do that which is right 
in My eyes, as did David his father. Howbeit, I will not 
rend aught of the kingdom out of his hand ; for I have made 
him prince all the days of his life. And it shall be, if thou 
wilt hearken to all that I command thee, and wilt walk in 
My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My sta- 
tutes and My commandments, as David My servant did, I 
will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I did for 
David, and will give Israel to thee. Solomon sought there- 
fore to kill Jeroboam,' but he fled to Shishak king of Egypt, 
and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.^ 

The time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all 
Israel was forty years. And Solomon slept with his fathers, 
and was buried in the city of David his father: and Reliohoam 
his son reigned in his stead. 

I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor 
that I had labored to do : and behold, all was vanity and vexation of 
spirit, and there was no profit under the sun ! — Eccl. 2, 11. 

'l22. THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON. 

" Solomon composed books of odes and songs containing 1,005 ; of par- 
ables and proverbs containing 3000 ; for he spoke a parable upon every 
sort of tree, from the hyssop that springs out of the wall to the cedar of 
Lebanon ; and also about beasts and all sorts of living creatures, whether 
upon the earth, or in the sea, or in the air.^'^ Of these j^roverbs many have 
been preserved in the Book of Proverbs, ascribed to Solomon. This book 
is a gnomic anthology, in which we can distinguish two parts. The first', 
which embraces the first nine chapters, is a kind of introduction, in Avhich 
the author recommends the inexperienced youth to seek wisdom, to follow 
his instructions, to flee from folly, from bad examples, and especially from 
the seduction of women. The second. part includes detached maxims, 
rules of conduct, and ingenious sentences. This part is composed of three 
sections, of which the first is directly attributed to Solomon, and contains 
numerous sentences and maxims of Solomon pronounced in difierent cir- 
cumstances, and of which there existed perhaps some collections. The 
second section, committed to writing by the men of Hezekiah, king of 
Judah, is composed of sentences and proverbs, which up to this time had 
probably existed only in the mouths of sages ; and which tradition equally 
attributed to Solomon, who was considered as the representative of 
gnomic poetiy. Finally, the third section contains short reflections and 
some enigmas of a certain Agour ; counsels given to the king Lemuel by 
his mother, and the description of the good woman by an unknown poet. 
To illustrate the above remarks, we add a fcAV selections from the different 
portions of the book. 

ON god's holiness, justice, and providence. 
For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, 
And He weighs well all his paths — 5, 21. 

1 Accordin;? to Joscphus, Jeroboam endeavored to persuade the people to for- 
sake Solomon, and bring the jLjovcrument over to himself. 
2A new king, perhaps no relation to the former, the father-in-law of Solomon. 
3 Compare above page 199. 



210 KINGS. 

The eyes of the Lord are in every place ; 

They behold the evil and the good. — 15, 3. 

The under- world, yea, the region of death, is before the Lord ; 

How much more the hearts of the sons of men. — Ibid. 11. 

All the ways of man are pure in his own eyes, 

But the Lord weighs the spirit. — 16, 2. 

Trust in the Lord with all thy heart. 

And lean not on thy own understanding ; 

In all thy ways acknowledge Him, 

And He will make thy paths plain. — .3, 5. 6. 

To man belongs the preparation of the heart ; 

But the answer of the tongue is from God. — 16, 1. 

Commit thy doings to God, 

And thy purposes shall be established. — Ibid. 3. 

As streams of water, 

So is the heart of the King in the hand of God ; 

He turns it whithersoever He will. — 21, 1. 

It is the blessing of God that makes rich, 

And He adds no sorrow with it. — 10, 22. 

GOD INFLICTS CHASTENINGS IN ORDER TO PROMOTE MORAL IMPROVE- 
MENT. 

My son, despise not the correction of the Lord, 

Nor be impatient under His chastisement! 

For whom the Lord loves He chastens. 

Even as a father the son in whom he delights. — 3, 11. 12. 

THE GAIN AND THE BENEFITS OP WISDOM. 

Happy the man who finds wisdom. 

Yea, the man who gets understanding ! 

For her profit is greater than that of silver. 

And her gain than that of gold. 

More valuable is she than pearls, 

And none of thy precious things is to be compared with her. j 

Length of days is in her right hand ; 

In her left hand are riches and honor. 

Her ways are ways of pleasantness. 

And all her paths are peace. «*• 

She is a tree of life to them that lay hold on her. 

And happy is every one who holds "her fast. — 3, 13-18. 

AGAINST IDLENESS. 

Go to the ant, O sluggard. 

Consider her ways, and be wise ! 

She has no governor. 

Nor overseer, nor ruler ; 

Yet she prepares in the summer her food. 

She gathers in the harvest her meat. 

How long wilt thou lie in bed, O sluggard? 

When wilt thou arise from thy sleep ■? 

"A little sleep, — a little slumber, — 

A little folding of the hands to rest ; " 

So shall poverty come upon thee like a robber, 

Yea, want, as an armed man! — 8, 6-11. 

I passed by the field of the slothful, 

And by the vineyard of the man void of understanding. 

And lo, it was all overgrown with thorns, 

And the face thereof was covered with nettles, 

And the stone wall thereof was broken down. 



KINGS. 211 

Then I saw and considered it well ; 

1 looked upon it, and received instruction. 

A little sleep, a little slumber ! 

A little folding of the hands to rest ! 

So shall poverty come upon thee like a highwayman. 

Yea, want like an armed man. — 24, 30-34. 

SEVEX THINGS HATEFUL TO GOD. ^ 

These six things doth the Lord hate ; 

Yea, seven are an abomination to Him : 

Lofty eyes, a false tongue. 

And" hands Avhich shed innocent blood; * 

A heart that contrives wicked devices. 

Feet that are swift in running to mischief, 

A false witness, that utters lies. 

And him that sows discord among brethren. — 8, 16-19. 

SUNDRY OBSERVATIONS OF 3IORA.L VIRTUES, AND THEIR CONTRARY 

VICES. 

Treasures of wickedness do not profit; 

But righteousness delivers from death. — 10, 2. 

The memory of the righteous man is blessed ; 

But the name of the wicked shall rot. — 10, 7. 

Hatred stirs up strife ; 

But love covers all offences. — 10, 12. 

In the multitude of words there Avants not offence ; 

But he that restrains his lips is Avise. — 10, 19. 

A man will be commended according to his wisdom ; \ 

But he that is of a pei'verse heart shall be despised. — 12, 8. 

He that walks Avith Avise men shall be Avise ; 

But the companion of fools shall be destroyed. — 13, 20. 

He that spares the rod hates his son; 

But he who loves him chastens him early. — 13, 24. 

The simple man belicA^es ev^ry Avord ; 

But the prudent looks well to his steps. — 14, 15. 

Better is a dinner of herbs, where there is love, 

Than the fatted ox, and hatred Avith it. — 15, 17. 

'Even a fool, Avhen'he is silent, is accounted wise; 

He that shuts his lips is a man of understanding. — 17, 28. 

He Avho has pity on the poor lends to God, 

And that Avhich he gives Avill He repay him. — 19, 17. 

Naught ! naught ! says the buyer ; 

But Avhen he has gone his Avay, then he boasts. — ^20, 14. 

Seest thou a man Avise in his OAvn conceit? 

There is more hope of a fool than of him. — 26, 8. 

He that digs a pit shall fall therein ; 

And he that rolls a stone, it shall return upon him. — 26, 27. 

Boast not thyself of to-morroAv, 

For thou knoAA'est not Avhat a day may bring forth, — 27, 1. 

Let another man praise thee, and not thy oaati mouth ; 

A stranger, and not thy OAvn lips. — 27, 2. 



123. THE DIVIDED MONARCHY. C. E., 975. 
REHOBOAM AND ABU AM, KINGS OF JUDAH. 

(1 Kings, 12.) 

Eehoboam went to Shechem, the capital of Ephraim; for 



212 KINGS. ^ 

all Israel had come there to make him king. And when 
Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egjrpt, heard 
of Solomon's death, then he returned from Egypt. And he 
and all the congregation of Israel came, and spoke to Reho- 
boam, saying: Thy father made our yoke grievous: n©w 
therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father lighter, 
and we will serve thee. And he said to them: Depart yet 
for three days, then come again to me. And the people 
departed. Now king Rehoboam consulted with the old men 
who stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and 
said : How do you advise that I may answer this people ? 
And they spoke to him, saying: If thou wilt be a servant to 
this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, 
and speak kind words to them, then they will be thy servants 
for ever. But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which 
they had given him, and consulted with the young men that 
had grown up with him, and stood before him; and he 
said to them: What counsel give you that we may answer 
this people? And they said: Thus shalt thou speak to this 
people : My little finger is thicker than my father's loins. 
And now whereas my father did load you with a heavy yoke, 
I will add to your yoke: my father has chastised you with 
whips, but' I will chastise you with scorpions.^ So Jeroboam 
and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the 
king had appointed. And the king answered the people 
roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave 
him; and spoke to them after the counsel of the young men, 
saying: My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to 
your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I 
will chastifee you with scorpions. The king hearkened not 
to the people; for the turn of events ^ was from the Lord, 
that He might perform His saying, which He spoke by Ahi- 
jah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat. So when 
all Israel saw that the king hearkened not to them, the people 
answered the king, saying: What portion have we in David ? 
neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: To your tents, 
Israel ! now see to thy own house, David ! So Israel de- 
parted to their tents. Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, 
the collector of the tribute, to enforce obedience; but all 
Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore 
king Rehoboam, fearing for himself, made speed to get 
to his chariot, and flee to Jerusalem. So Israel rebelled 
against the house of David, and made Jeroboam king. When 

1 Whips havincfleaden balls atthe ends of their lashes, withhooks projoctinc: from 
them. According to others, the thorny stem of the Cirg-plant, called, from the 
irritating wounds which it inflicted, "the scorpion plant.*' 

2 Without interfering with mau'8 free will, God guides the course of events, and 
accomplishes Hit; purposes. 



KINGS. 213 

Rehoboam, however, had come to Jerusalem, he assembled 
all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin one hun- 
dred and eighty thousand chosen men, who were warriors, 
to fight against Israel, to bring the kingdom, again to his 
house. But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of 
God, saying: Speak to Rehoboam, and to all the house of 
Judah and Benjamin, saying: Thus says the Lord: You shall 
not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of 
Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from 
Me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the Lord, 
and returned to depart, according to the word of the Lord. 

Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign; 
and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem. And Judah 
did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked Him; 
for they also built high places, erected images and groves, 
on every high hill, and under every green tree. And it 
came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shi- 
shak, king of Egypt, came up against Jerusaleii;i : and he 
took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the 
treasures of the king's house, and all the shields of gold 
which Solomon had made, instead of which Rehoboam made 
brazen shields. And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and 
Alijam his son became king in his stead. He reigned over 
Judah for two years, dying in the third year of his reign. 
During this short reign the enmity between Judah and Israel 
broke out into open war. Israel was defeated in battle, and 
Abijam took Beth-el, and some of the neighboring towns 
from Jeroboam. 

He that walks with wise men shall be wise; but the companion of fools 
shall be destroyed.— Prov. 13, 20. 



124. JEROBOAM KING OF ISRAEL. 

(1 Kings, 12. 13. 14.) 

The ten northern and eastern tribes having made Jero- 
boam king, he enlarged and fortified Shechem in the hilly 
country of Ephraim for his capital, and Penuel on the river 
Jabbok, as a second capital, to secure the obedience of the 
tribes on the east of the Jordan. Now he thought in his 
heart, if the multitude went to worship God at Jerusalem, 
they would probably repent of what they had done, be en- 
ticed by the worship of God there performed, and return 
to the house of David; and if so, he should run the risk of 
losing his own life. So he made two golden calves, and 
built two temples for them, the one in Bethel, the other in 
Dan, and said to the people : It is too much for you to go up 



2 1 4 KINGS. 

to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, Israel, which brought thee 
up out of the land of Egypt. And this thing became a sin: 
for the people went there to worship. And he made priests 
of all ranks of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi} 
And he ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth 
month (instead of the seventh), like to the feast that is in 
Judah (the feast of booths). 

One day Jeroboam was standing by the altar of incense, to burn incense 
to the calf which was at Bethel, and behold, there came a man of God 
out of Judah and cried against the altar in the name of the Lord, and 
said : altar, altar ! thus saith the Lord : Behold, a child shall be born 
to the house of David, Josiah by name ; and upon thee shall he oflFer the 
priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones 
shall be burnt upon thee. And this is the sign that the Lord has spoken : 
Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be 
poured out. But when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of 
God, he put forth his hand from the altar, saying : Lay hold on him ! 
And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he 
could not pull it in again. The altar also Avas rent, and the ashes 
poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God 
had given by the word of the Lord. Then the king said to the man of 
God : Entreat now the face of the Lord thy God, and pray for me, that 
my hand may be restored again. And the man of God besought the 
Lord, and the king's hand was restored again, and became as it was 
before. And the king said to the man of God : Come home with me, and 
refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward. But the man of God re- 
plied : If thou wilt give me half thy house, I will not go in with thee, 
neither Avill I eat bread nor drink water in this place; for so was it 
charged me by the word of the Lord, saying: Eat no bread, nor drink 
water, nor turn again by the same way that thou earnest. So he went 
another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Beth el. 

Now there dwelt an old prophet in Beth-el ; and when his sons had told 
him all the works that the man of God had done that day: the words 
which he had spoken to the king, and by what way he had returned, he 
went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak : and he 
said to him : Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah ? And 
he said : I am. Then he said to him : Come home with me, and eat 
bread ; I am a prophet a-lso as thou art ; and an angel spoke to me by the 
word of the Lord, saying : Bring him back with thfee into thy house, that 
he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied to him. So he went 
back with him, and did eat bread in his house and drank water. And it 
came to pass when the man of God was gone a lion met him by the way, 
and slew him. So quickly was this prophet punished for turning aside 
from the commandment of the Lord. 

At that time Abijah, the son of Jeroboam, fell sick, and 
Jeroboam said to his wife: Arise, I pray thee, and disguise 
thyself, and go to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the 
prophet, who told me that I should be king over this people. 
And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of 
honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become 

' Wc find in 2 Chron. 11, 14, that because the Lcvites would not join with him 
he expelled them, and <,'avc their posse*»sions to liis j)riest>»; upon which they went 
over to J^elioboam, and all the devout Israelites with them, aud thus slreugtheuud 
the kin":dom oi Kehoboam. 



KINGS. 215 

of the child. And when Jeroboam's wife came to the house 
of Ahijah, who could not see, for his eyes were set by reason 
of his age. The Lord had said to him: Behold, the wife of 
Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son: for he 
is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say to her: however, when 
she cometh in, she shall feign herself to be another wom^n. 
Now when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, he said: 
Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself 
to be another? for 1 am sent to thee with heavy tidings. G-o, 
tell Jeroboam: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Forasmuch 
as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee 
prince over my people Israel, and rent the kingdom away 
from the house of David, and gave it thee : and yet thou hast 
not been as my servant David, who kept My commandments, 
and followed Me, but hast done evil above all that were be- 
fore thee; for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, 
molten images, so as to provoke Me to anger, and hast cast 
Me behind thy back : therefore behold, I will bring evil upon 
the house of Jeroboam. Him that dietb of the house of Je- 
roboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in 
the field shall the fowls of the air eat; for the Lord has 
spoken it. Arise thou therefore, get thee to thy own house; 
and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. 
And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him; for he 
only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him 
alone of all his house is found something good in the sight 
of the Lord God of Israel. So Jeroboam's wife arose, and 
departed, and when she came to the threshold of the door, 
the child died : and they buried him ; and all Israel mourned 
for him, according to the word of the Lord, which He spoke 
by the mouth of His servant Ahijah the prophet. The time 
which Jeroboam' reigned was twenty-two years; and he 
was succeeded by his son Nadah. 

My eyes are upon all their ways : they are not hid from My face. — 
Jerem. 16, 17. 

Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing to forsake the 
Lord thy God.— Jerem. 2, 19. 



125. NADAB, BAASHA, ELAH, ZIMRI, OMRI, AND 
TIBNI, KINGS OF ISRAEL. 

(1 Kings, 15. 16. 17.) 

Nadab (954-953), Jeroboam's son, did evil in the sight of 
the Lord. Early in his reign he entered upon a war against 

1 We read in 2 Cliron. 13, 20. that the Lord struclc Jeroboam with some violent, 
painful disease, or grievous accident, so that he died under tlie evident displeasure 
oIGod. =. , i- ^ 



216 KINGS. 

the Philistines and laid siege to Gihhethon} But while en. 
gaged therein, Baasha, probably an officer in Nadab's army, 
rose up against him, and slew him and all his house, so 
that the word of the Lord concerning Jeroboam was fulfilled. 
Nadab reigned but one year and part of the second, and 

Baasha (953-930), the son of Ahijah, of the tribe of Is- 
sachar, succeeded him, and reigned over Israel twenty-four 
years. In the 13th year of his reign he attempted to fortify 
Kamah, in order to blockade the frontier of Judah and pre- 
vent his people going over to Asa, the king of Judah. But 
Asa called in the help of Benhadad, king of Syria, so that 
Baasha left Ramah and entrenched himself in Tliirza^^ now 
the royal city. Baasha did evil in the sight of the Lord. 
And the word of the Lord came to Jehu, the prophet: Be- 
hold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha, and the pos- 
terity of his house, and will make his house like the house of 
Jeroboam, the son of Nebat. Baasha slept with his fathers 
and 

Elah (930-928), his son, reigned in his stead two years. 
His servant Zimri (captain of half his chariots) conspired 
against him, as he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in 
the house of Arza, his steward. Zimri went in, smote and 
killed him, and reigned in his stead. As soon as 

Zimri (928) sat on his throne, he slew all the house of 
Baasha. He came to the throne just at the time when the 
army were encamped anew against Gibbethon. Now when 
the soldiers heard: Zimri has conspired, and has also slain 
the king: they made Omri, the captain of the host, king over 
Israel that day in the camp. 

Omri (928-918) forthwith marched with the army to 
Tirzah, besieged Zimri, who, finding resistance vain, set fire 
to the palace and perished in the flames, after having been 
king seven days. Then were the people of Israel divided 
into two parts: and while one-half followed Omri, another 
half of the people set up Tibni as king. The civil war be- 
tween Omri and Tibni lasted for six years, when Omri's 
people prevailed and Tibni was put to death. Omri then 
reigned for six years more. He bought of Shemer a beau- 
tiful hill westward of Tirzah, in the mountain of Kphraim, 
and on that hill he built the city Samaria, which was ever 
after the capital of the kingdom of the ten tribes. Omri was 
a very able ruler, although religiously tie did worse than all 
that were before him. He reigned twelve years, and his 
son Ahab followed him. 

' a city in the territory of Dan, assiijnccl to the Levites, which the Philistines 
had oeci'ipic'd. 
•Proverbial for its hcaiity. 



KINGS. 2 1 7 

The same Kabbi (Hill el) saw once a skull floating on the face of the 
water, and said to it : Because thou didst drown others, thou wast 
drowned! and at the end will those who drowned thee also be drowned. 
— Sayings of the Fathers, 2, 7. 



126. ASA, KING OF JUDAH. 

(1 Kings 15, 22. 2 Kings 3. 2 Chron. 10-12, 17-20.) ; 

Abijali -was followed as king of Judah (955-914) by Asa,* 
his son, who reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem, and did 
what was right in the eyes of the Lord. The first ten years 
of his reign the land enjoyed quiet. But at length he was 
attacked by Zerah, king of Ethiopia, who invaded Judah 
with a great army. Asa besought God for help, met and 
entirely defeated this mighty host, and returned laden with 
spoil to Jerusalem. Azariah, the son of Oded, met Asa on 
his return, and exhorted him to continue faithful to God. 

In consequence of this exhortation, Asa was led to make great religious 
reforms, and gathering the people to Jerusalem, he solemnly renewed the 
covenant. 2 On that day the people swore to the Lord with a loud voice, 
and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with cornets. And allJudah 
rejoiced at the oath ; for they had sworn with all their heart. Now Asa 
removed his grandmother Maacha from her eminent rank as queen- 
mother,^ burnt the symbol of her idolatry, and cast the ashes of it into the 
brook Kidron. In the seventeenth year of Asa's reign Baasha made a 
successful attack upon Asa, and took and fortified Eamah, which was less 
than ten miles from Jerusalem, to make thence incursions and do mischief 
to the kingdom of Asa. Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that 
were left in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the 
king's house, and sent them to Benhadad, king of Syria, desiring his 
assistance, putting him in mind that they had had a friendship together 
from the times of their forefathers. Benhadad hearkened to king Asa, 
and sent the captains of his host against the cities of Israel. When Baa- 
sha heard this, he left off fortifying Ramah, and returned to assist his own 
people in their distresses. At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa and 
said : Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and not on the Lord 
thy God, therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. Were not the 
Ethiopians a huge host, with very many chariots and horsemen 1 yet, be- 
cause thou didst rely on the Lord, He delivered them into thy hand. For 

THE EYES OF THE LORD RUN TO AND FRO THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE 
EARTH, TO SHOW HiMSELF STRONG IN BEHALF OF THEM WHOSE HEART 

IS PERFECT TOWARD HiM., Herein thou hastiione foolishly. Then Asa 
was wroth with the seer and put him in a prison-house, and he oppressed 
others of the people at the same time. 

' J<DX i. e. (probably) physician. 

2 This renewai of the original covenant with God, made with their fathers in the 
wilderness (2 Mos. 24, .3-8) is the first on record. The next falls 300 years later, 
in the reign of Josiah, and a third, in time of Nehemiah. On such occasions the 
people bound themselves by a solemn oath to observe all the directions of the 
Law, and called down God's curse upon them if they forsook it. 

3 A daughter, perhaps grand-daughter, of Absalom. The high rank of queen fell 
to the king's mother: she had the place of first importance in the state, which, 
would have been held by the king's wife, if he had but one. 

10 



218 KINGS. 

Asa died in the forty-first year of his reifrn. And they buried him in 
his own sepulchres, and laid him in the bed which was tilled with sweet 
odors and various kinds of spices ; and they made a very great burning 
for him.i 

Cursed be the man who trusts in man, and makes flesh his arm, and 
whose heart departs from the Lord. — Jerem. 17, 5. 



127. JEHOSHAPHAT, KING OF JUDAH. 

(1 Kings, 15. 22. 2 Chron. 17-20. 21. 22.) 

Jehoshaphat^ (914-891) ascended the throne of his father 
^sa at the age of thirty-five. He prospered, because he 
followed the footsteps of his father and of David. He 
sought the Lord, and his heart being encouraged in the ways 
of the Lord, he was enabled to overcome even those diCBcuI- 
ties which had been hindrances to his father Asa; he took 
away the high places and groves out of Judah. 

Jehoshaphat fortified the cities of Judah, and those^in a part of Eph- 
raim,!* which his father had succeeded in occupying. In the third year 
of his reign he sent princes, and priests, and Levites through his land to 
instruct the people, and to make known the book of the Law in all the cities 
of Judah. The fear of the Lord fell also upon all the nations that were round 
about Judah. Not only his own people, but the Philistines and Arabians 
also, willingly brought their presents and tribute. So Jehoshaphat became 
exceedingly gi-eat. He reorganized the military forces, built castles and 
storehouses in Judah, increased the means of communication and traffic 
with the towns, and made Jerusalem a great military centre. Like Da- 
vid, he had his heroes (gibborim) or mighty men, of whom one, Adnah, 
was commander. There were two other captains from the tribe of Judah, 
and two of Benjamin. But though so well prepared to meet an enemy, 
we do not find that he thought of conquests. With the Kingdom of Israel 
he was not only in peace, but he even entered into a close alliance with 
Ahab, the wicked King of Israel, which alliance proved disastrous to 
Jehoshaphat and to his house, by its cordiality, resulting in an inter- 
marriage. Jehoshaphat's heir, Jehoram, married Ahab's daughter, 
Athaliah.* 

We must now return to the history of Israel, which will show the 
results of this alliance and the sad consequences thereof for Judah. 

128. AHAB KING OF ISRAEL. THE PROPHET 
ELIJAH. 

(1 Kings, 16. 17.) 

Omri left the kingdom to his son Ahab (929-918), who || 
reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. Ahab did 

1 The burning of spices in iionor of a king at liis funeral was customary.— Com- 
pare Jerem. 34, 5. ^j 

^DiDiyin"' (i. e., whom God judges, whose cause he sustains.) 1 1 

3 In the Kingdom of Israel, of which Ephraim was the main support. 

'' There is a Jewish tradition that when Ahab humbled himself for his sin (1 
Kings, 21, 27-29) and lay ni sackcloth, he sent for Jehoshaphat to advise and 
exhort him, and even submitted to hard stripes IVoiu his hand. 



KINGS. 219 

evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were before him. 
Having married Jezebel/ the daughter of Ethbaal, king of 
the Zidonians, he introduced the worship of Baal into Sama- 
ria, built a temple to Baal, and had an altar there, where he 
sacrificed to that god. Ahab also made a grove for Ashera,^ 
and did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger 
than all the kings of Israel before him. By the orders of 
Jezebel his wife, the prophets of the Lord were put to death, ^ 
except one hundred, who were hid and fed in a cave by 
Obadiah, the governor of Ahab's house. 

Elijah ^ tlte Tishhite, who was one of the inhabitants of Gil- 
ead, appeared before Ahab, and said: As the Lord God of 
Israel liveth, before whom 1 stand, there shall not be dew nor 
rain these years, but according to my word. Then the word of 
the Lord came to him, saying: Get thee hence, and turn thee 
eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith,^ which is 
to the east of the Jordan. Thoushalt drink of the brook; 
and I have commanded the ravens ^ to feed thee there. So 
he did according to the word of the Lord, and the ravens 
brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and in the 
evening, and he drank of the brook. But after a while, the 
brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land; 
and the word of the Lord came to him, saying: Arise, get 
thee to Zarephath,'^ which belongs to Zidon, and dwell there; 
behold, I have commanded a widow there to sustain thee. 
So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to 
the ^ate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering 
sticks, and he called to her, and said: Fetch me, 1 pray thee, 
a little water in a vessel, that I may drink; and bring me, I 
pray thee, a morsel of bread in thy hand. But she said: 
As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but a hand- 
ful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and behold, 
I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and prepare food 
for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. Where- 
upon Elijah said: Fear not! go and do as thou hast said; 
but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it to me, 
and then make for thee and for thy son. For thus says the 
Lord God of Israel: The barrel of meal shall not waste, 

1 She is connected \\ith general history, being the grand, aunt of Dido, the 
foundress of Carthage,— Josephus, C, Ap. 1, 18. 

2 AsHERA was the same as the Zidonian goddess Astarte. 

3 This was the first great religious persecution that history records. 
■* ^n^ 7X i. e., my God is Jah. (Abbreviation of Jehovah.) 

5 Robinson identifies it with Wad]/ Kelt, behind Jericho. 

* Some would render D"'3"1J.N the people of Ot^eb ; others, the Arabians ; but the 
word properly signifies ravens; and their coming daily to him confutes the former 
notion. 

'' A Phoenician town, situated about midway between Tyre and Sidon. 



220 KINGS. 

neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord 
sends rain upon the earth. And she went and did according 
to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did 
eat many days. The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did 
the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, 
which He spoke by Elijah. 

But after these things the son of the woman, the mistress 
of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that 
there was no breath left in him. And she said to Elijah: 
"What have I to do with thee, thou man of God ? Hast thou 
come to me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my 
son ? And he said : Give me thy son. He took him, and car- 
ried him up into the upper chamber where he abode, and 
laid him upon his own bed, and cried to the Lord, and said: 
Lord my God! hast Thou also brought evil upon the widow 
with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son? Then stretching 
himself upon the child three times, he cried to the Lord, 
and said: Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul 
come into him again ! And the Lord heard the voice of 
Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and 
he revived. And Elijah took the child, and delivered him 
to his mother, and said: See, thy son liveth. And the wo- 
man said to Elijah: Now by this I know that thou art a man 
of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is 
truth. 

The Lord is nigh to all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon 
Him in truth. — Ps. 145, 18. 

It is meet to be said to God, I have borne chastisement, I will not 
offend any more. — Job 34, 31. 



129. ELIJAH AND THE PRIESTS OF BAAL. 

(1 Kiugs, 18.) 

After many days, the word of the Lord came to Elijah in 
the third year, saying: Go, show thyself to Ahab; and I will 
send rain upon the earth. Elijah arose and went to show 
himself to Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria. 
Therefore Ahab called Obadiah the governor of his house, 
who feared the Lord greatly, and said: Go into the land to 
all springs of water and to all torrent-courses: perad venture 
we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we 
lose not any of our beasts. So they divided the land between 
them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, 
and Obadiah went another way by himself. And as Obadiah 
was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, 
and fell on his face, and said: Art thou here, my lord 



KINGS. 221 

Elijali? And he answered him: I am; go tell thy lord: Be- 
hold, Elijah is here. But Obadiah replied: What have I 
sinned, that thou wouldst deliver thy servant into the hand 
of Ahab, to slay me? As the Lord thy God liveth, there is 
no nation or kingdom (of those over which the king has 
influence) whither my lord has not sent to seek thee ; and 
when they said: He is not there, he took an oath of the 
kingdom and nation, that they found thee not. Now thou 
sayest: Go tell thy lord: Behold, Elijah is here. And it 
shall come to pass, as soon as I have gone from thee, that the 
spirit of the Lord shall carry thee whither I know not; and 
so when I come and tell Ahah, and he cannot find thee, he 
shall slay me. But I thy servant fear the Lord from my 
youth. "Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel 
slew the prophets of the Lord, how I hid a hundred men of 
the Lord's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with 
bread and water? Elijah answered: As the Lord of hosts 
liveth, before whom 1 stand, I will surely show myself to 
him to-day. 

So Obadiah went to tell Ahab, and Ahab went to meet 
Elijah. When Ahab saw him, he said: Art thou here, O 
troubler of Israel? But Elijah answered: I have not 
troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye 
have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast 
followed the Baalim.^ Now therefore send and gather to 
me all Israel to Mount Carmel,^ and the prophets of Baal, 
four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of Asher, four hun- 
dred, who eat from Jezebel's table. So Ahab sent to all the 
children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together to Mount 
Carmel. Then Elijah came to all the people, and said: How 
long halt ye between two opinions ? If the Lord is God, 
follow Him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people 
answered him not a word. Then said Elijah to the people: I, 
even I only, remain (in the open avowal of himself as) a proph- 
et of the Lord; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty 
men. Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let 
them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, 
and lay it on v/ood, and put no fire under: and I will dress 
the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: 
and call ye on the name of your god, and I will call on the 
name of the Lord: and the God who answereth by fire, let 
Him be God. And all the people answered and said : It is 
well spoken. Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal: 

1 The various aspects under wliich the god, Baal, was worshipped, Baal-shamiu, 
Baal-zehub, etc. 

2 A mountain running N. W. from the plain of Esdraelon, and projecting, as a 
promontory, into the Mediteri-aneau sea. 



222 KINGS. 

Choose one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for 
ye are many, and call on the name of your god; but put no 
fire under. And they took the bullock which was given 
them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal 
from morning even until noon, saying: Baal, hear us! 
But there was no voice, no sign of an answer. And they 
leaped up and down round the altar which was made.^ And 
it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said: 
Cry aloud; for he is a god: either he is meditating, or he is 
gone aside, or he is on a journey, or perad venture he sleep- 
eth, and must be awaked. And they cried aloud, and cut 
themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till 
the blood gushed out upon them. And when mid-day was 
past, they shouted and called and leaped wildly until the 
time of the offering of the evening sacrifice,^ there was 
neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded. 
Now Elijah said to all the people; Come near to me. And 
he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.^ 
He took twelve stones, accordmg to the number ot the 
tribes, and built an altar m the name of the Lord, round 
which he ordered a wide trench to be made, which he filled 
with water. Then he put the wood in order, and cut the 
bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said. Fill 
four pitchers with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, 
and on the wood. And he said'. Do it the second time. 
And they did it the second time. And he said: Do it the 
third time. And they did it the third time. And the water 
ran round about the altar. And it came to pass at the time 
of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the 
prophet came near and said: Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, 
and of Israel, let it be known this day that Thou art God in 
Israel, and that I am Thy servant, and that I have done all 
these things at Thy word. Hear me, Lord, hear me ! that 
this people may know that Thou art the Lord God, and that 
Thou hast turned their hearts back again. Then the fire of 
the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the 
wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water 
that was in the trench. And when the people saw it, tliey 
fell on their faces: and exclaimed: The Lord He is God! 
the Lord He is God! And Elijah said to them: Take tlie 
prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they 
took them, and Elijah brought them down to the brook 
Kishon, and slew them there. Now Elijah said to Ahab: 

' Wild dancing has always been a devotional exercise in the East. 

2 Throe o'clock in the aftcnioon. 

3 The Avorshippers of Baal had broken down God's altar, and set up one to Baal 
in its stead. 



KINGS. 223 

Get up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abund- 
ance of rain. So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And 
Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself 
down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees, 
and said to his servant:^ Go up now, look toward the sea. 
And he went up, and looked, and said: There is nothing. 
And he said again seven times: Go! And at the seventh 
time, the servant said: Behold, there arises a little cloud out 
of the sea, like a man's hand. And Ehjah said: Go up, say 
to Ahab: Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the 
rain stop thee not. And straightway the heaven was black 
with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And 
Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.^ And the hand of the 
Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran 
before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.^ 

Kemember thy Creator in the days of thy youth. — ^Eccl. 12, 1. 
Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God. — 5 Mos. 18, 13. 
1 am the Lord : that is My name and My glory will I not give to 
another, neither My praise to graven images. — Isa 42, 8. 



130. ELIJAH'S FLIGHT FROM JEZEBEL. ELL 
J AH ON MOUNT HOREB. 

(1 Kings, 19.) 

When Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done to the 
prophets of Baal, she sent a messenger to Elijah, saying: 
So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy 
life as the life of one of them by to-morrow about this time. 
And he saw, and he rose and went for his life to Beer-shela^^ 
and left his servant there. But he himself went a day's 
journey into the wilderness, and sat down under a broom- 
bush, and requested for himself that he might die, and 
said: It is enough now, Lord, take away my life; for I 
am not better than my fathers. And as he lay and slept, 
behold, an angel touched him, and said: Arise and eat. 
And he looked, and behold, there was a cake baked among 
embers, and a cruse of water at his head: and he did eat 
and drmk, and lay down again. And the angel of the Lord 
came again and touched him, and said: Arise and eat a sec- 
ond time, for otherwise the journey will be beyond thy 

1 Tradition says that Elijah's servant was the son of the widow of Zarephath, 
and afterwards the prophet Jonah. 

2 Where Ahab had a palace some sixteen miles distant. 

^ Girding himself after the fashion of the Syce or forerunner of the East. The 
trnimphant prophet ot God is still the respectful servant of his King. 

^ About 95 miles from Jezreel, on the very borders of ^:he southern wilderness ; 
the old patriarchal homestead of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 



224 KINGS. 

powers. And lie arose, and did eat and drink, and went in 
the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights ^ to 
Horeb the Mount of God. And he came thither to a cave, 
and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came 
to him, and He said to him: What doest thou here, Elijah? 
Elijah said: I have been very jealous for the Lord God of 
hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy cove- 
nant, thrown down Thy altars, and slain Thy prophets with 
the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my 
life, to take it away. And He said: Go forth, and stand 
upon the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord 
passed by: a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and 
broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord ; but the Lord was 
not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake; but the 
»Lord was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a 
fire: ^ but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a 
still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that 
he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood 
in the entering of the cave. And behold, there came a 
voice to him, and said : What doest thou here, Elijah ? 
And he said: I have been very jealous for the Lord God of 
hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Thy cov- 
enant, thrown down Thy altars, and slain Thy prophets with 
the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my 
life, to take it away. And the Lord said to him: Return on 
thy way to the wilderness of Damascus; and go and anoint 
Hazael to be king over Syria: and Jehu the son of Nimshi, 
shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha, the son 
of Shaphat, of Ahel-meholah,^ shalt thou anoint to be prophet 
in thy place. And it shall come to pass, that him that 
escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that 
escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.'* Yet I 
have left me seven thousand in Israel, aU the knees which 
have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth which has not 
kissed him.^ So he departed thence, and found Elisha the 
son of Shephat, who was ploughing with twelve yoke of 
oxen before him, and he with the twelfth. Elijah crossed 

1 It was a journey of only four or five days ; bnt he went through by-ways for 
fear of being pursued ; and took time to rest in different places. It was his duty 
to provide for his own safety in the absence of any great reason for self-exposure. 

2 According to the accounts we have of volcanoes and fiery eruptions, there was 
a violent storm of wind, then an earthquake, and then fire broke out ; nature was 
euflfered to do its ofiice without interruption. 

3 It must have been in the Jordan valley, not far from Bethshan. 

*Wc must understand these words in the sense suggested by Hosea 6, 5. (I 
have slain them by the words of my mouth.) Comp. Jerhi. 1, 10. 

^Idolaters sometimes kissed the ol)ject of their worship. (Job 31, 26, 27.) 
Cicero speaks of having seen an image of Hercules, the mouth and beard of 
which were worn away by the kisses of worshippers.— Cic. adv. vcrrem, 4, 43. 



i 



KINGS. 225 

over to him, threw his mantle over the shoulders of Elisha, 
and passed on. Elisha, leaving his plough, ran after Elijah, 
and said: Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my 
mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said: Go, and 
return, for thou knowest what I have done to thee. Elisha 
turned back, and killed the yoke of oxen with which he had 
been ploughing, for a farewell feast, boiled their flesh with 
the ploughs and yokes, to indicate his renunciation of his old 
calling, and then followed Elijah, and ministered to him. 

And Moses said : Let me see Thy glory ! And He said : I will make 
pass all My goodness before thee, being gracious to whom I will be 
gracious, and showing mercy on whom I will show mercy. — 2 Mos. 33, 19. 

Jose, the son of Joezer, of Zeredah, said : Let thy house be a house of 
assembly for the wise men ; and cover thyself with the dust of their feet 
(the scholars sitting on lower benches), and drink in their words with 
thirsty avidity. — Sayings of the Fathers, 1, 4. 

131. NABOTH'S VINEYARD. 

(1 Kings, 21.) 

And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the 
Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the 
palace of Ahab king of Samaria. And Ahab spoke to 
Naboth, saying: Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it 
for a garden of herbs, because it is near to my house : and 
I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it: or if it 
seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in 
money. And Naboth said^to Ahab: The Lord forbid it me, 
that I should give the inheritance of my fathers to thee.^ 
Upon this the King was grieved, as if he had received an 
injury, and he would neither wash himself, nor take any 
food; and when Jezebel asked him what it was that troubled 
him, he related to her the whole affair. And Jezebel his 
wife said to him: Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Is- 
rael? Arise, and eat bread, and let thy heart be merry: I 
wiU give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. So 
she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his 
seal, and sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles of 
Naboth's city; saying: Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on 
high among the people.^ And set two men, sons of Belial,^ 
before him, to bear witness against him, saying: Thou didst 
blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and 
stone him, that he may die.* The elders and the nobles of 

1 The Law forbids the alienation of landed property.— 3 Mos. 25. 23-28. 

2 Bring Naboth before a court. In courts the prisoner is naturally set up above 
the people, in order that all may see him. The fast was to indicate, that a deed 
was done which disgraced the town and required a public repentance. 

3 Without usefulness, good for nothing^ hence : worthless, vile persons. 

* The punishment for blasphemy was stoning to death (5 Mos., 13, 10). This, 
according to traditional Law, involved confiscation of the criminars property. 



226 KINGS. 

his city did as Jezebel had sent to them, and as it was writ- 
ten in the letters. Two men witnessed against him in the 
presence of the people, saying: Naboth did blaspheme God 
and the king. Then they carried him forth out of the city, 
and stoned him with stones, that he died. Then they sent 
to Jezebel, saying: Naboth is stoned, and is dead. "When 
Jezebel heard of it she said to Ahab: Arise, take possession 
of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, for he is dead.^ 
Now he arose and went down from Samaria, and came to 
Jezreel to take possession of the vineyard. He was attended 
by two of the great officers of his household, one of whom 
was Jehu, the son of Nimshi. When Ahab reached Jezreel, 
and proceeded to the vineyard, he saw standing in the midst 
thereof Elijah. Thus says the Lord, the prophet exclaimed: 
Hast thou killed, and also taken possession ? In the place 
where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy 
blood, even thine. And Ahab said to Elijah : Hast thou found 
me, my enemy? And he answered: I have found thee; 
because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of 
the Lord. Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take 
away thy posterity, and will make thy house like the house 
of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of 
Baasha, the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith 
thou hast provoked Me to anger, and made Israel to sin. 
And of Jezebel also spoke the Lord, saying: The dogs shall 
eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. Him that dieth of Ahab 
in the city the dogs shall eat: and him that dieth in the field 
shall the fowls of the air eat.^ When Ahab heard those 
words, he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his 
flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly. 
And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, say- 
ing: Seest thou how Ahab humble th himself before Me ? 
because he humbleth himself before Me, I will not bring the 
evil in his days: but in his son's days will I bring the evil 
upon his house. ^ 

I find more bitter than death the woman, wliose heart is snares and 
nets, and her hand as bands ; even the sinner shall be taken by her. — 
Eccles. 7, 26. 

Lord, who shall abide in Thy tabernacle 1 who shall dwell in Tliy holy 
hill 1 He, who backbiteth not with his ton<2:ue, nor doeth evil to his 
neighbor, nor taketh up a reiH'oach against his neighbor. — Ps. 15, 1-3. 

1 According to 2 Kinc:?, 0, 26, Naboth's two sons were also put to death at tlie 
same time. "In tlic East a parent's ,i;uilt constantly involves the punishmont of 
his children. lu Israel it Avas not to be so. Conip. 5 Mos. 24, IG. 

2 So tremendous was Elijah's curse that, twenty years afterwards, Jehu, who 
heard it, unconscious tliat he himself was to be the chief instrument in its fuhil- 
ment, reminded his companion, Bidkar. of it. 

3Ahab's»humiliation, imperfect as it was, was accepted by Him who is ever 
ready to receive the sinner who turns to Him. 



I 



KINGS. 227 

132. AHAB'S WARS WITH BEN-HADAD. 

(1 Kings 20.) 

Ben-hadad, the king of Syria, gathered an immense force of horses, chari- 
ots, and men, and supported by thirty -two tributary kings, went up, and 
besieged Samaria. In the insolence of assured victory, Ben-hadad pro- 
posed the most degrading terms of surrender. The messengers sent by 
the Syrian king said : Thus says Ben-hadad : Thy silver and thy gold is 
mine ; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. The 
king of Israel answered and said : My lord, king, according to thy say- 
ing : I am thine, and all that I have. But the messengers came again, 
and said : Thus speaks Ben-hadad, saying : I will send my servants to 
thee to-morrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the 
houses of thy servants ; and whatsoever is pleasant in thy eyes, they shall 
take away. Now all the elders and the people said to Ahab : Hearken 
not to him, nor consent. Therefore Ahab said to the messengers of Ben- 
hadad : Tell my lord the king : All that thou didst send for to thy servant 
at the first, I will do ; but this thing I may not do.^ And Ben-hadad sent 
to him, and said : The gods do so to me, and more also, if the dust of the 
ruins of Samaria should be sufficient to supply handfuls for all the people 
that follow me. And the king of Israel answered and said : Tell him : 
Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth 
it off". When Ben-hadad heard this message he gave orders to attack the 
city. Ahab then numbered 200 young men of the provinces and 7,000 
men of the garrison of Samaria, and with this small force he marched 
out, and attacked the Syrian post, while Ben-hadad with the thirty-two 
kings who helped him, were engaged in drinking and feasting. "Without 
leaving the cups Ben-hadad gave order to captui-e the Israelites. But a 
sudden panic seized Ben-hadad's men ; Ahab smote his horses and chari- 
ots, and men with a great slaughter ; the Syrians fled ; and Israel pursued 
them : and Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with a few 
horsemen. Now a prophet came to the king of Israel, and said : Go, 
strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest, for at the return 
of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee. And indeed the 
servants of the king of Syria said to him : Their gods are gods of the 
hills ; therefore they were stronger than we ; but let us fight against them 
in the plain, "^ and surely we shall be stronger than they. Do this thing : 
Take the kings away, and put governors instead of them.^ And number 
thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and 
chariot for chariot : and we will fight against them in the plain, and surely 
we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened to their voice, and 
did so. At the return of the year, Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians, and 
went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. The army of Israel was like 
two little flocks of kids before them. And there came a man of God, and 
spoke to the king of Israel, and said : Thus says the Lord : Because the 
Syrians have said : The Lord is God of the hills, but He is not God of the 
valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thy hand, and 
ye shall know that I am the Lord. Seven days the armies encamped op- 
posite one another. At last the battle was joined, and the children of 
Israel slew the Syrians. The remnants of the army took refuge in the 
fortifications of Aphek,* but there the wrath of the Lord pursued them. 

1 Ahab cousented to become tributary to him, but refused the farther demand, 
to submit to general pluuder aud spoliation. 

2 There the war-chariots, in which their chief strength lay, would prove of real 
service. 

3 Who would be more directly amenable to the royal authority. 

4 The village of Fik on the great road between Damascus and Jerusalem, sis 
miles east of the Sea of Galilee. 



228 KINGS. 

The city walls were thrown doAvn, probably by an earthquako, and twen- 
ty-seven thousand were buried in the ruins. Ben-hadad, with a few at- 
tendants, flei to some place of concealment in the innermost part of the 
city. But his servants said to him : Behold now, we have heard that the 
kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings ; let us, I pray thee, put 
sackcloth on our loins, and ropes about our necks, and go out to the king 
of Israel : peradventure he will save thy life. So they did, and said to 
the king of Israel : Thy servant Ben-hadad says : I pray thee, let me live. 
And Ahab said : Is he yet alive '? he is my brother. Then Ben-hadad 
came forth to him ; and he caused him to come up into the chariot. And 
Ben-hadad said to him : The cities^ which my father took from thy father, 
I will restore ; and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my 
father made in Samaria. Then said Ahab r I will send thee away with 
this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away. 

A man's pride will bring him down, but he that is of a humble spirit 
shall attain to honor. — Prov. 29, 23. 



133. THE DEFEAT AT RAMOTH. AHAB'S 
DEATH. 

(1 Kings, 22.) 

Upon this, a certain man of the sons of the prophets ^ said to his com- 
panion in the word of the Lord : Smite me, I pray thee. And the man 
smote and wounded him. So the prophet departed and waited for the 
king by the way, and disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes. 
And as the king passed by, he cried to the king, and said: Thy servant 
went out into the midst of the battle; and behold a man turned aside and 
brought a man to me, and said - Keep this man ; if by any means he be 
missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or thou shalt pay a talent of 
Sliver And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. The 
king replied So shall thy judgment be; thou thyself hast decided it. 
Now the prophet hastened, and took the bandage from off his eyes, and 
the king discerned him that he Avas one of the prophets, who now ex- 
claimed '. Thus says the Lord Becavise thou hast let go out of thy hand, 
a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go 
fot his life, and thy people f<n* his people. 

Three years had elapsed, and still Ben-hadad neglected to surrender to 
Israel the cities he had engaged to do ; Ahab therefore prepared to take 
them by force. At this junctui-e Jehoshapliat, king of Judah, had come 
to Samaria to visit Ahab, the father-in-law of Jehoshaphat's heir, Je- 
horam. He was received with great honor. On that occasion Ahab 
proposed that they should unite their forces, to wrest Ramoth-gilead from 
the hands of the king of Syria. Jehoshaphat acceded to the profjosition 
heartily. I am as thou art, he said ; my people as thy people, my horses 
as thy horses. He was not, however, willing to commence the war with- 
out consulting God by the prophets. Ahab gathered four hundred of his 
prophets, and said to them- Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead ^ to battle, 
or shall I forbear'^ And they said ; Go up ! for the Lord sliall deliver it 
into the hand of the Iving. And Jehoshaphat said : Is there not here a 

1 Among which Ramoth-gilead was probably the most important. 

^By the "sons of the prophets" we arc to understand the schools or colleges of 
prophets, which existed In several towns, where voiing men were regiilaiiy 'hIu- 
cated for the prophetical offtce. These schools make their first appearance under 
Samuel (compare page i;i3). According to Joseplnis and the Jewish commenta- 
tors generally this prophet was Micaiah, the son of Imlah. 

3,In the territory of Gad, afterwards occupied by the king of Syria. 



KINGS. 229 

prophet of the Lord besides, that we might inquire of him ? And the 
king of Israel replied : There is yet one man, Micaiah, the son of Inilah,i 
by whom Ave may inquire of the Lord ; but I hate him ; for he docs not 
projihesy good concerning me, but evil. But Jehoshaphat said : Let not 
the king say so. Ahab sent and called for Micaiah. He was brouglit 
from the prison to which his true s])eaking had consigned him. Each of 
the two kings were seated upon his throne,'-^ having put on his royal robes. 
And Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, had made himself horns of iron ; 
and he said : Thus says the Lord ; With these shalt thou push the Sy- 
rians, until thou hast consumed them. And all the prophets prophesied 
.so, saying: Go up to Hamoth-gilead, and prosper; for the Lord shall de- 
liver it into t le king's hand. Then Micaiah came into the presence of 
the kings, and Ahab said to him : Micaiah, shall we go against Hamoth- 
gilead to battle, or shall we forbear ? And he answered (in an ironical 
tone) : Go, and prosper ; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the 
king. Whereupon the king said : Hoav many times shall I adjure thee 
that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the Lord ? 
Then Micaiah said : I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep 
without a shepherd : and the Lord said : These have no masters ; let 
them return to their houses in peace. Now Ahab said to Jehoshaphat : 
Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but 
evil ? And Micaiah said : Hear thou therefore the word of the Lord : I 
saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing 
by Him on His right hand and on His left. And the Lord said : Who 
shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Eamoth-gilead ? And 
one said in this manner, and another said in that manner. And there 
came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said : I will persuade 
him. And the Lord said : Wherewith ? And he said : I will go forth, 
and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. Then the 
Lord said : Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also : go forth, and do 
so. Now therefore, behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth 
of all these thy prophets, and th(j Lord has spoken evil concerning thee. 
But Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, went near, and smote Micaiah on 
the cheek, and said : Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to 
speak to thee * And Micaiah answered : Behold, thou shalt see in that 
day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself. But the 
king of Israel said : Take Micaiah, and carry him back to Anion, the 
governor of the city, and say : Thus says the king : Put this fellow in the 
prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, 
until I come back in peace. And Micaiah said : If thou return at all in 
peace, the L(jrd has not spoken by me. Hearken, people, every one of 
you! 

But these words of the prophet did not change the mirpose of the 
kings. They marched against Kamoth. In the battle Ahab, fearing the 
truth of the prophet's words, disguised himself, Avhile Jehoshaphat fought 
in his royal robes. The Syrian officers, commanded to direct all their 
efibrts against the king of Israel, pursued after Jehoshaphat, but, discov- 
ering their mistake, turned back to seek Ahab. Now a certain man drew 
a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the .pints of tluj 
harness : Avherefore he said to the driver of his chariot : Turn thy hands 
and carry me out of the host ; for I am wounded. The battle increased 
that day, and Ahab, though his weakness compelled him to be sup])ortcd 
by his attendants, held on through the day, that the absence of their 
leader may not dispirit his troops. At last towards sunset the king sank 
down dead. Now the proclamation went forth : Every man to his city, 

' The same who rebuked Ahab for letting Bon-hadad go. 

^The Oriental kings had portable thrones, which they took with them upon 
their journeys. 



230 KINGS. 

and every man to his own country ! and so the forces were scattered npon 
the hills, as they had been seen by Micaiah in vision, as sheep that have 
not a shepherd. Ahab's body was brought to Samaria and buried there. 
But the blood-stained chariot and armor were washed in a tank outside 
tiie walls of the city, and the thirsty dogs, lapping the gory water, fulfilled 
the awful threat of Elijah, as "dogs hcked the blood of Kaboth shall dogs 
lick thy blood, even thine." 

Ahaziah (897-896), who followed his father Ahab and the impiety of 
him, reigned nearly two years. He induced Jehoshaphat to join him in a 
commercial expedition to Ophir, reviving the trade so advantageous to 
Solomon. The two kings founded a fleet at Ezion-geber (Suez). But 
again a prophetic voice was raised against the expedition, and it came 
true, for the ships were broken to pieces. 

Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil. — 2 Mos. 23, 2. 



THE SECOND 

BOOK OF THE KINaS. 

OR, 

THE HISTORY OF THE KIXGS OF JUDAH Am ISRAEL 



134. AHAZIAH'S REIGN AND DEATH. 
ELIJAH'S DISAPPEARANCE. 

(2 Kings, 1. 2.) 

The reign of Ahaziah in Israel was shortened by an untimely end. A 
railing, or lattice-work, gave way, and he fell from the flat roof of his 
palace. Finding the effects of the injury he had received increase, he sent 
messengers to inquire of Baal-zebdb,i the god of Ekron, whether he 
should recover. Elijah confronted the messengers Avith a warning of a 
certain death of the idolatrous monarch. Two bands of soldiers were sent, 
one after the other, to seize the prophet, but, at his call, fire from heaven 
consumed the wicked instruments of an ungodly king. A third leader 
humbly addressed the prophet in the language of supplication. He pre- 
vailed, and Elijah went down with him to the king, and said to him : Thus 
says the Lord : Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to inquire of 
Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, (is it not because there is no God in Israel 
to inquire of his word?) therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed 
on which thou hast gone up, but shalt surely die. So he died according to 
the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram, his 
brother, reigned in his stead, because Ahaziah had no son. 

Elijah was at Gilgal, when he learned that the hour of his 
departure was at hand, and he said to Elisha: Tarry here, I 
pray thee; for the Lord has sent me to Beth-el.'^ And Elisha 
said to him: As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I 
will not leave thee. So they went down to Beth-el. And 
the sons of the prophets who were at Beth-el came forth to 
Elisha, and said to him: Knowest thou that the Lord will 
take away thy master from thy head to-day ? And he said : 
Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said to 
him: Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the Lord has sent 
me to Jericho. And he said: As the Lord liveth, and as thy 

^ " Lord (averter) of flies. ''^ Flies in the East constitute one of the most terrible 
of plagues. 

2 Elijah resolved to spend his last hours in visiting the schools of the prophets 
at Gilgal, Beth-el, and Jericho. 



232 KINGS. 

soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho. 
And the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho came to 
Elisha, and said to him: Knowest thou that the Lord will take 
away thy master from thy head to-day? And he answered: 
Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Ehjah said to 
him: Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the Lord has sent me to 
Jordan. And he said: As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul 
liveth, I will not leave thee. And they went on to Jor- 
dan. Elijah ungirded himself, rolled his mantle into a staff, 
and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and 
thither, so that they w^ent over on dry ground. And 
when they had gone over, Elijah said to Elisha: Ask what 
I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And 
Elisha said: I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit 
be upon me.^ And he said: Thou hast asked a hard thing: 
nevertheless, if thou see me taken from thee, it shall be so 
to thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, 
as they still went on, and talked, that behold, there appeared 
a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both 
asunder; and Elijah went up in a storm into the sky. And 
Elisha saw it, and he cried : My father ! my father ! the 
chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.^ And he saw him 
no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent 
them in two pieces. He also took up the mantle of Elijah 
that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of 
Jordan; and with the mantle of Elijah he smote the waters, 
and said: Where is the Lord God of Elijah ? And behold, 
the waters parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over. 
And when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho saw 
him, they said: The spirit of Elijah does rest on Elisha. 
And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the 
ground before him. 

The Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man can do unto me. — Ps 
56, 12. 

The desire of the righteous shall be granted. — ^Prov. 10, 24. 

135. JEHORAM, KING OF ISRAEL. VICTORY OVER 
THE MOABITES. 

(2 Kings, 3.) 

Jehoram (896-885), the son of Ahab, reigned over Israel 
twelve years. He wrought evil in the sight of the Lord ; but 
not like his father, and like his mother: for he put away the 

Ule claimed to be acknowledfjed as Elijah's /ns^6or« spiritual son. and asked 
for twice as much of Elijah's spirit as should be inherited by any other of the 
"sons of the prophets." 

2The true defence of Israel, better than either chariots or horsemen. 



KINGS. 233 

image of Baal that his father had made. Nevertheless, he 
adhered to the sins of Jeroboam, and departed not there- 
from. 

Mesha, king of Moab, was tributary to Ahab, but on the death of that 
monarch he threw off the yoke of Israel. Now Jehoshaphat, the king of 
Judah, was again persuaded to unite his forces to those of Israel. The 
king of Edom joined them, and the confederate forces took the direction 
of the wilderness of Edom, to attack the southern border of Moab. After 
seven days' march in this wilderness they were in great distress for want 
of water' And the king ot Israel said: Alas, that the Lord has called 
these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab ! But 
Jehoshaphat said : Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may 
inquire of the Lord by him ? And one of the king of Israel's servants 
answei-ed and said : Here is Elisha, the son of Shaphat, who poured water • 
on the hands of Elijah. i And Jehoshaphat said : The word of the Lord 
is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of 
Edom went down to him. 

But Elisha said to the king of Israel: What have I to do 
with thee ? get thee to the prophets of thy father and of thy 
mother. And the king of Israel said: Nay! reproach me 
not, since I am in a sore strait, — and not only I, but these 
two other kings also, — for the Lord is about to deliver us 
into the hand of Moab. And Elisha said: As the Lord of 
hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I 
regard the presence of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, I 
would not look toward thee, nor see thee. But now bring 
me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel 
played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him. And he 
said: Thus says the Lord: Make this valley full of ditches. 
For thus says the Lord: Ye shall not see wind, neither shall 
ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that 
you may drink, both you and your cattle, and your beasts. 
And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord. He will 
deliver the Moabites also into your hand. In the morning, 
at the time when the meat-oiiering was offered, behold, there 
came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled 
with water. Now when the Moabites had heard that the 
kings had come up to fight against them, they gathered all 
that were able to put on armor, and stood on the border, 
ready to defend their territory. They rose up early in the 
morning, and when the sun shone upon the water, the water 
appeared to the Moabites like blood. And they said: This 
is blood ! the kings are surely slain : they have smitten one 
another: now therefore, Moab, to the spoil! But when they 
came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote 
them, so that they fled before them, and were pursued to 
their own land, and the king himself besieged in his capital. 

1 Waited upon him as a menial servant. 



234 KINGS. 

In despair tlie king made a sally; he went out with seven 
hundred men to break through the enemies; but he could 
not. Then he sacrificed his eldest son, as a burnt-offering, on 
the wall of his capital city. Struck with horror at this dread- 
ful act, the kings of Judah and Israel withdrew their armies, 
and returned into their own land. 

Who shall dwell in Thy holy hill ? .... In whose eyes a vile 
person is contemned, but who honors them that fear the Lord.— Fs. 15, 4. 



136. ELISHA'S MIRACLES. 

(2 Kings, 4.) 

A poor widow of a prophet cried to Elisha, saying : Thy servant, my 
husband, had died in debt, and now the creditors have come to take away 
my two sons as servants by way of payment.^ And Elisha said to her : 
"What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And 
she said : Thy handmaid has not anything in the house save a pot of oil. 
Then he said : Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbors, even 
empty vessels ; borrow not a few. And when thou hast come in, thou 
shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into 
all those vessels, and set aside that which is full. So she went from him, 
and did according to the prophet's words. And it came to pass, when 
the vessels were full, that she said to her son : Bring me yet a vessel. 
And he said : There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed. Then she 
came and told the man of God. And he said : Go, sell the oil, and pay 
thy debt, and live thou and thy children of the rest. 

And it came to pass on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem,^ where a 
rich woman was, who often asked him to eat bread, which he at first mod- 
estly refused, but at length accepted. And so it was, that as often as he 
passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said to her hus- 
band : Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, who passes 
by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the 
wall ; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a chair, and a 
candlestick : and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he shall turn in 
thither. The proposal was carried out, and the next time Elisha came to 
Shunem, he was taken into the chamber prepared for him. Then he said 
to Gehazi, his servant : Call this Shunammite. When she came, he said 
to her : Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care ; what is 
to be done for thee ? wouldst thou be spoken for to the king, or to the 
captain of the host ? But she answered : I dwell among my own people.^ 
What then, is to be done for her ? asked Elisha of his servant. Verily, 
she has no child, and her husband is old, was the reply. Then Elisha 
called her again, and said : About this season in the next year, thou shalt 
embrace a son. And she said : Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not 
lie to thy handmaid. At the predicted season a son was born to her. 
When the child was grown, it happened that he went out to his father to 
the reapers. And he complained and said to his father : My head ! my 
head ! * The father ordered a servant to carry the child to his mother. 

1 The law of Moses, like the Athenian and the Roman law, permitted servitude for 
debt, but conlined the debtor's power of pledging within the bounds of the period 
of Jubilee. 

2 Shunem lay between Carmel and Samaria, 

3 She has no wrong to complain of; she dwells among her friends, with whom 
6he lives peaceably, 

4 The child's malady was probably a sunstroke (comp. Ps. 121, 6). 



KINGS. 235 

She took him on her knees till noon, then he dietl. And she went up, laid 
him on the bed of the man of God, shut the door upon him, and went 
out Then she called to her husband, and said : Send me, I pray thee, 
one of the young men, and one of the asses, that 1 may run to the man 
of God, and come again. But he said : Wherefore wilt thou go to him 
to-day? it is neither new mooni nor Sabbath. And she said: Peace! 
Let me do as I wish ! So she went and came to the man of God to Mount 
Carmel. And when the man of God saw her afar off, he said to Gehazi, 
his servant : Behold, yonder is that Shunammite : run now, I pray thee, 
to meet her, and say to her : Is it well with thee ? Is it well Avith thy 
husband ? Is it well with the child ? And she answered : It shall be well. 
But when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the 
feet. Gehazi came near to thrust her away ; but the man of God said : 
Let her alone ; for her soul is vexed within her : and the Lord has hid it 
from me, and has not told me. Then she said : Did I desire a son of my 
lord? Did I not say: Do not deceive me? Ihen he said to Gehazi: 
Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thy hand, and go thy way : if thou 
meet any man, salute him not,^ and if any salute thee, answer him not 
again : and lay ray staff upon the face of the child. But the mother of 
the child said : As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave 
thee. And he arose, and followed her. And Gehazi passed on before 
them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but it was all in vain, 
there was neither voice, nor hearing. Therefore he went again to meet 
him, and told him, saying : The child is not awaked. And when Elisha 
had come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon 
his bed. He Avent in, therefore, and shut the door upon them, and 
prayed fervently to the Lord. And he went up, and lay upon the child, 
and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his 
hands upon his hands : and he stretched himself upon the child ; and the 
flesh of the child waxed warm. Then he returned, and walked in the 
house to and fro ; and went up, and stretched himself upon him : and 
the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. And he 
called Gehazi, and said : Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And 
when she had come in to him, lie said : Take up thy son. Then she went 
in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her 
son, and went out. 

And Elisha came again to Gilgal. As there was famine in the land, 
and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, one went out into 
the field and gathered his lap full of wild gourds, and came and put them 
into a pot to prepare a meal thereof; for they knew them not (as nox- 
ious herbs). And as they were eating of the pottage, they cried out, and 
said : O thou man of God, there is death in the pot ! But he said : Then 
bring meal. And he cast it into the pot, and said : Pour out for the 
people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot. 

And there came a man from Baal-shalisha,^ and brought the man of 
God bread of the first-fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn 
in his bag. And he said : Give to the people, that they may eat. And 
his servitor said : What ! should I set this before a hundred men ? He 
said again : Give the people, that they may eat ; for thus says the Lord : 
They shall eat, and shall leave thereof So he set it before them, and they 
did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the Lord. 

Trust in the Lord, and do good, and verily thou shalt be fed ; for the 
righteous are never forsaken, nor his seed, though begging bread. 

I have been young, and now I am old ; yet have I not seen the righte- 
ous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. — Ps. 37, 25. 

1 By the law the firet day of each month was to be kept holy.— 4 Mos. 28. 11-15. 

2 Salutation is the forerunner of couvereation, and one bent on speed should 
avoid every temptation to loiter. 

siu the Sharon plain, to the west of the highlands of Ephraim. 



236 KINGS. 

Who is honorable 1 He who honors mankind ; as is said : For those 
who honor me, I will honor ; and those who despise me shall be lightly 
esteemed. — Sayings of the Fathers, 4, 1. 



137. NAAMAN'S LEPROSY. 

(2 Kings, 5.) 

Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man 
with his master, and honorable, because by him the Lord had given deliv- 
erance to Syria : but he was a leper. Now a little maid, whom the Syrians 
had brought away captive out of the land of Israel, waited on Naaman's 
wife. And she said to her mistress : Would God my lord were with the 
prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy. 
Whereupon Naaman told his lord, saying : Thus and thus said the maid 
that is of the land of Israel. And the king of Syria said : Go, depart, 
and I will send a letter to the king of Israel. And he departed, and took 
with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten 
changes of raiment. And he brought the letter to, the king of Israel, in 
which was written : Now when this letter comes to thee, behold, I have 
therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover 
him of his leprosy. When the king of Israel had read the letter, he rent 
his clothes, and said : Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man 
is sent to me to be recovered of his leprosy ? Therefore consider, I pray 
you, and see how he seeks a quarrel against me. But when.Elisha, the 
man of God, had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, then 
he sent to the king, saying: Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes ? let 
him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel. 
So Naaman came Avith his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the 
door of the house of Elisha. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying : Go 
and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, 
and thou shalt be clean. But Naaman was wroth, and Avent away, and 
said : Behold, I thought, he Avill surely come out to me, and stand, and 
call on the name of the Lord his God, and move his hand up and down 
over the place, and cure the leprosy. Are not Abana and Phakpar 
rivers of iJamascus, better than all the waters of Israel ? May I not wash 
in them, and be clean 1 So he turned and went aAvay in a rage. But his 
servant came near, and said : My father, if the prophet had bid thee do 
some great thing, wouldst thou not have done it 1 How much rather, 
then, when he says to thee: Wash, and be clean? Then he went down 
and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the 
man of God : and his flesh came again like to the flesh of a little child, 
and he was clean. And he retui-ned to the man of God,i he and all his 
company, and came and stood before him ; and he said : Behold, now I 
know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel : now therefore, 
I pray thee, take a present of thy servant. But he said : As the Lord 
lives, before whom I stand, I Avill receive none. And he urged him to take 
it; but he refused. And Naaman said : Shall there not then, I pray thee, 
be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for thy servant will 
henceforth ofter neither burnt-offering nor sacrifice to other gods, but to 
the Lord. In this thing the Lord pardon thy servant, that when my 
master goes into the house of Rimmox to worship there, and he leans on 
my hand, I bow myself in the house of Rimmon. And Elisha said to 

' Naaman was grateful. From the Jordan to Samaria was a distance of not less 
than thirty-two or thirty-three miles,— considerahly more than a day's journey. 
I)amat«(uis"lay beyond Jordan, so that Naaman Jeuglhcucd bis journey by at least 
three days. 



KINGS. 237 

him : Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way. But Gehazt, 
the servant of Elisha the man of God, said : Behold, my master has 
spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that Avhich he 
brought ; but as the Lord lives, I will run after him, and take somewhat 
of him. So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And Avhen Naaman saAV 
him running after him, he liglited down from the chariot to meet him, 
and said : Is all well 1 And he said : All is well. My master has sent 
me, saying : Behold, even now there have come to me from Mount Eph- 
raimi two young men of the sons of the prophets : give them, I pray 
thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of garments. And Naaman said': 
Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound two talents of 
silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two 
of his servants; and they bare them before him. And when he came to 
the hill, he took them from their hand, and bestowed them in the house : 
and he let the men go, and they departed. But he went in, and stood 
before his master ; and Elisha said to him : Whence comest thou, Gehazi ? 
And he said : Thy servant went nowhere. And he said to him : Did not 
my heart go with* thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to 
meet thee 1 Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and 
oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and men-servants, and 
maid-servants 1 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave to thee 
and to thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as 
white as snoAv. 

Before I was afflicted, I went astray, but since I have kept Thy law. — 
Ps. 119, 67. 

He (Ben Azai) used to say : Despise no man, and deem nothing impos- 
sible ; for there is no man who has not his hour, neither is there a thing 
that has not its place. — Sayings of the Fathers, 4, 3. 

Who is rich '? He who is content with his lot. — Sayings of the Fathers, 
4, 1. 

Remove from us the way of lying. — ^Ps. 119, 29. 



138. THE SYEIANS STRUCK WITH BLINDNESS. 
ELISHA AND THE FAMINE. 

(2 Kings, 6-7.) 

Then the king of Syria made war against Israel, and took counsel with 
his servants, telling them, where they should lie in ambush, to surprise the 
Israelites. But Elisha warned the king of Israel, who was thus saved 
several times. Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled 
for this thing ; and he called his servants, and said : Will ye not show me 
who of us is for the king of Israel 1 And one of his servants said : None, 
my lord, O king! but Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel 
the words that thou speakest in thy bed-chamber. Go, said the king, and 
spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, 
saying : Behold, he is in Dothan.^ Therefore he sent thither horses, and 
chariots, and a great host : and they came by night, and compassed the 
city about. And the servant told Elisha of it, saying : Alas, my master ! 
what shall we do 1 And he answered : Fear not ; for they that are with 
us are more than they that are with them. And Elisha prayed, and said : 
Smite this people, Ipray Thee, with blindness.^ And God smote them 

1 Bethel and Gilgal, where were schools of the prophets, were situated on Mount 
Ephraim. 

2 A small city near Samaria. 

» Such a dazzling of their sight, as that they could not distinctly see the men 
they sought for. 



238 KINGS. 

with bliudnpss, according to the word of Elisha. And Elisha said to 
them : This is not the way, neither is this the city : follow me, and I will 
bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria. 
When they had arrived there, Elisha said : Lord, open the eyes of these 
men, that they may see. And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw : 
and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. And the king of Israel 
said to Elisha, when he saw them : My father, shall I smite them"? shall 
I smite them ? And he answered : Thou shalt not smite them : wouldst 
thou smite those Avhom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with 
thy bow 1 Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, 
and go to their master. So he prepared great provision for them : and 
when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to 
their master. And the bands of Syria came no more into the land of 
Israel. 

After this Ben-hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, 
and besieged Samaria. Food soon became so scarce in the city that an 
ass's head Avas sold for fourscore pieces of silver ($48), and the fourth part 
of a cab ^ of dove's dung^ for five pieces of silver ($3). And as the king 
of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman to him, say- 
ing : Help, my lord, king ! And he said : If the Lord do not help thee, 
whence shall 1 help thee ? out of the barn-floor, or out of the wine-press 1 
And the king said to her : What aileth thee 1 And she answered : This 
woman said to me : Give thy son, that we may eat him to-day, and we 
will eat my son to-morrow. So we boiled my son, and did eat him : and 
I said to her on the next day : Give thy son, that we may eat him : and 
she has hid her son. And when the king heard the words of the woman, 
he rent his clothes ; and said : God do so and more also to me, if the head 
of Elisha, the son of Shaphat, shall stand on him this day. But Elisha 
sent him word : Hear ye the word of the Lord : Thus says the Lord : To- 
morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, 
and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. Then 
the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, an(f 
said: Behold, if the Lord would make Avindows in heaven, might this 
thing be ? And he said : Behold, thou shalt see it with thy eyes, but 
shalt not eat thereof. 

And there were four leprous men at the entering of the gate ; and 
they said one to another : Why sit we here until we die 1 If we enter into 
the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there : and if we 
sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us go to the host 
of the Syrians : if they save ixs alive, we shall live ; and if they kill us, we 
shall but die. And they rose up in the twilight to go to the camp of the 
Syrians : and when they had come to the uttermost part of the camp of 
Syria, behold, there was no man there. For the Lord had made the host 
of the Syrians hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the 
noise of a great host : and they said one to another : Lo, the king of 
Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the 
Egyptians, to come upon us. Therefore they arose and fled in the twi- 
light, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp 
as it was, and fled for their life. And when these lepers came to the out- 
ermost part of the cam.p, they went into one tent, and ate and drank, and 
carried away silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it : and 
came again, and entered into another tent, and did the same. Then they 
said one to another : We do not well : this day is a day of good tidings, 
avid we hold our peace; if we tarry till the morning-light, punishment 
will fall upon us : now therefore come, that wc may go and tell the king's 

J Josephus made a cab about equal to two of our quarts. The fourth part would 
therefore be about a pint, 
a A sort of pulec, which is called "dove's dung," or sparrow's dung in Arabic. 



KINGS. 239 

household. So they did, and the kin^ arose in the night, and said to his 
servants : I will now show you Avhat the Syrians have done to us. They 
know that we are hungry ; therefore have they gone out of the camp, to 
hide themselves in the field, saying : When the Israelites come out of the 
city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city. And one of his 
servants answered and said : Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses 
that remain, which are left in the city, and let us send and see. And they 
went after them to Jordan : and lo, all the way was full of garments and 
vessels, Avhich the Syrians had cast away in their haste. And the mes- 
sengers returned, and told the king. And the people went out, and 
spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for 
a shekel, and" two measures of barley for one shekel, according to the 
word of the Lord. And the king appointed the lord on Avhose hand he 
leaned to have the charge of the gate ; and the people trode upon him in 
the gate, and he died, as the man of God had foretold. 

If thy enemy hunger, feed him ; if he thirst, give him drink. — Prov. 25, 
21. 

The folly of man perverts his way, and then his heart frets against 
God.— Prov. 19, 3. 

A good man brings good tidings. — 1 Kings 7, 45. 



139. LAST YEARS AND DEATH OF JEHOSHA- 
PHAT, KING- OF JUDAH. 

(2 Chron. 19-20.) 

"Wlien Jehosliaphat liad returned after the defeat of the 
two kings at Rabatli-Gilead to Jenisalem, Jehu the son of 
Hanani, reproved him, for helping the ungodly, and loving 
those that hated the Lord._ Wiser than his father, instead of 
resenting the rebuke, he apparently laid the warning to 
heart' and went through his kingdom, reclaiming those who 
had wandered from the faith. He established judges in the 
cities, and charged them, to judge not for man, but for the 
Lord, who, said he, is with you in judgment. Therefore let 
the fear of the Lord be upon you, take heed and do accord- 
ing to it; for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, 
nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts. A supreme 
council, composed of priests, Levites and chief of the fathers 
was established at Jerusalem. 

About the same time a vast host of Ammonites, Moabites, 
and Edomites made an expedition against him. Alarmed at 
the news of their having entered Judah and pitched at 
Engedi,'^ Jehoshaphat set himself to seek the Lord, and pro- 
claimed a fast throughout all Judah. The people assembled 
from all the cities, men, women, and children, and Jehosha- 
phat prayed, acknowledging the sovereign power of God in 
all things. our God, he closed, wilt Thou not judge them ? 

1 Josephus says that he performed expiatory sacrifices to God. 

2 A city near the Dead Sea, aud distaut 3TJ miles from Jerusalem. 



240 KINGS. 

for we have no might against this great company that comes 
against ns; neither know we what to do; but our eyes are 
upon Thee. An answer of encouragement was given by a 
prophetic impulse upon Jahaziel, a Levite; and Jehoshaphat 
led forth his army towards the v/ilderness of Tekoa^^ with 
this short but comprehensive address: Believe in the Lord 
your God, so shall you be established; believe his prophets, 
so shall you prosper. Now they marched forward singing 
praises to the Lord. The words of the prophet became true. 
Discord arose among their enemies; the children of Lot 
(Ammon and Moab) destroyed the children of Esau (Edom), 
and then attacked each other, so that the army of Judah 
soon beheld from the heights a widely-spread scene of 
slaughter, and had only to descend to the spoil, which 
employed them three days to gather. This valley was after- 
wards called: the Valley of Berachah^ (the Yalley of Bless- 
ing) because there they blessed the Lord. After four days 
they returned with great joy, and songs of thanksgiving. 
Jehoshaphat reigned twenty-five years; and then died, and 
was buried in a magnificent manner in Jerusalem. Ho was 
among the best of the kings of Judah, and in external pros- 
perity his kingdom most nearly rivalled the grandeur of that 
of David. Jehoeam (889), his son, succeeded him. 

When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be 
at peace with him. — Prov. 16, 7. 

Let the righteous smite me — it shall be a kindness : and let him 
reprove me — it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break mv head. 
— Ps. 141, 5. 

Nitai, the Arbelite, said : Keep thyself from an evil neighbor ; and as- 
sociate not with the Avicked. — Sayings of the Fathers, 1, 7. 

A man who toucheth pitch will be defiled. 



140. HAZAEL, KING OF SYRIA. JEHU, KING 
OF ISRAEL. 

(2 Kings, 8. 9.) 

Once Elisha came to Damascus, and Ben-hadad, the king of 
Syria was sick. "When he was told of the prophet's pres- 
ence, he sent to him Hazael, a high officer of his court, 
with presents, to inquire of him concerning his disease and 
its ultimate result. So Hazael came, and said: Thy son 
Ben-hadad, king of Syria, has sent me to thee, saying: Shall 
I recover of this disease ? And Elisha said: Go, say to 

1 The wilderness under the city of Tekoa, about twelve miles to the south of | 

Jerusalem. 

^ n3")3 pD;' identical with Bereikut, which lies to the west of Tekoa, between 
Beth-lehem and Hebron. 



KINGS. 241 

him: Tliou shalt certainly live: howbeit the Lord has shov/n 
me that he shall certainly die. Then Elisha looked at 
Hazael, without speaking, until Hazael was ashamed, and 
put out of countenance/ and Elisha wept. And Hazael 
said: Why weepeth my lord ? And he answered: Because 
I know the evil that thou wilt do to the children of Israel: 
their strongholds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men 
wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children 
in pieces. And Hazael said: What! am I no better than a 
dog, that I should do these things ? ^ And Elisha answered: 
The Lord has shown me that thou shalt be king over Syria. 
So Hazael departed, and came to his master, who said to him: 
What said Elisha to thee ? and he answered : He told me that 
thou shouldst surely recover. But on the morrow Hazael 
took a thick cloth, and dipped it in water, and spread it on 
the king's face, so that he died.^ Hazael reigned in his 
stead. 

Now Joram, the king of Israel, made war with this 
king of Syria, having as allies the kings of Judah; first 
Jehoshaphat, as we have seen, after his death Jehoram his 
son (who was also brother-in-law to the king of Israel), and 
now, Jehoram being dead after a reign of eight years, 
Ahaziah (885-884) Jehoram's son, who reigned in his stead. 
So Ahaziah went with Joram, the son of Ahab, to the war 
against Hazael. When Joram was wounded and had gone 
back to Jezreel to be healed of his wounds, Ahaziah came 
to see him. 

At that time Elisha called one of the sons of the prophets, 
and said: Gird up thy loins, and take this flask of oil in thy 
hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead, and look out there Jehu, the 
son of Nimshi, carry him to an inner chamber, and take the 
flask of oil, pour it on his head, and say: Thus says the Lord: 
I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open the door, 
and flee, and tarry not. So the young man went to Ramoth- 
gilead. The captains of the host were sitting; and he said: 
I have an errand to thee, captain. And Jehu said: To 
which of us ? And he said: To thee, O captain. And 
when he had gone with him into the house, the young 
prophet poured the oil on his head,* and said to him: Thus 

1 HazaeVs eye fell before his, and his cheek flushed. Elisha, it would seem, had 
detected the guilty thought that was in Hazael's heart, and Hazael perceived that 
he had detected it. 

2 Some understand this as if he had said : I am so inconsiderable a creature, 
that it is not likely, I should have power to do it. 

3 Josephus says : the king complained of heat, and that Hazael, under pretence 
of cooling his face, stifled him. 

■* Only in extraordinary cases, as when the succession was removed, the kings 
were anointed. Jehu was the only king of Israel that was anointed after the 
division of the ten tribes. 

11 



242 KINGS. 

says the Lord God of Israel : I have anointed thee king over 
the people of the Lord, even over Israel. And thou shalt 
smite the house of Ahab, that I may avenge the blood of My 
servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of 
the Lord, shed by Jezebel. Then Jehu came forth to the 
servants of his Lord; and one said to him: Is all well? 
"Wherefore came this mad fellow to thee ? And he said: You 
know the man, and his communication. And they said: It 
is false; tell us now. And he said: Thus and thus spoke he 
to me, saying: Thus saith the Lord : I have anointed thee 
king over Israel. Then they hastened, and each man took 
his garment, and put it under Jehu on the stairs, and they 
blew with trumpets, saying: Jehu is king! So Jehu con- 
spired against Joram, and rode in a chariot, and went to 
Jezreel; for Joram lay there. This was when Ahaziah king 
of Judah had come down to see Joram. But the watchman 
on the tower in Jezreel spied the multitude of Jehu as they 
came, and said: I see a company. And Joram said: Take a 
horseman and send to meet them, and let him say: Is it 
peace ? So there went one on horseback to meet him, and 
said: Thus says the king: Is it peace ? And Jehu said: 
What hast thou to do with peace ? turn thee behind me. 
And the watchman told, saying: The messenger came to 
them, but he comes not again. Then the king sent a second 
messenger with the same order. Jehu gave him the same 
reply. And when the watchman informed the king, that also 
the second did not return, and that the company was led by 
Jehu, and that his driving was furious, Joram said: Make 
ready! And Joram, and Ahaziah king of Judah, went out, 
each in his chariot, and they met Jehu in the field of Naboth 
the Jezreelite. And when Joram saw Jehu, he said: Is it 
peace, Jehu ? And he answered: What peace, so long as 
the idolatry of thy mother Jezebel and her many witch- 
crafts continue ? And Joram turned his hands and fled, 
and said to Ahaziah: There is treachery, Ahaziah! And 
Jehu drew a bow with his full strength, and smote Joram 
between his arms, and the arrow went out at his heart, and 
he sunk down in his chariot. At Jehu's command his body 
was cast out in the field of Naboth, the Jezreelite, whose in- 
nocent blood had been spilt by Ahab. And when Ahaziah 
the king of Judah saw this, he fled, but Jehu followed after 
him and smote him also. He fled to Mcgiddo,^ and died 
there. His servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, 
and buried him with his fathers in the city of David. 

What hast thou to do with peace ? There is no peace, says God, to 
the wicked. — Isa. 48, 22. 

1 On the S. W. border of the great ph\in of Esdraelon. 




P 








Levy Type Photo- Eng. Co., Baltimore 



KINGS. 243 



141. JEZEBEL'S DEATH. EXTERMINATION OP 
AHAB'S HOUSE AND OF THE WOE- 
SHIPPERS OF BAAL. 

(2 Kiugs, 10.) 

Then Jehu (884-856) came to Jezreel, and when Jezebel 
heard of it, she painted her face, dressed her head, and 
looked out at the window. And as Jehu entered in at the 
gate, she said: Is it peace, Zimri, murderer of his lord? 
And he lifted up his face to the window, and said: Who is 
on my side ? who? And there looked out to him two or 
three officers. And he said: Throw her down. So they 
threw her down, and some of her blood was sprinkled on the 
wall, and on the horses, and he trode her under foot. And 
when they went to bury her, they found no more of her than 
the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands; for all 
the other parts of her body were eaten by the dogs, accord- 
ing to the words of the prophet Elijah. Then all that re- 
mained of the house of Ahab were slain by Jehu. And 
when he had entered into Samaria, he gathered all the peo- 
pie together and said to them: Ahab served Baal a little; 
but Jehu shall serve him much. Now therefore call to me 
all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests; 
let none be wanting; for I have a great sacrifice to do to 
Baal: whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But 
Jehu did it in subtilty, to the intent that he might destroy 
the worshippers of Baal. At Jehu's command a solemn as- 
sembly for Baal was proclaimed, and all the worshippers of 
Baal came; none was wanting, and the house of Baal was 
full from one end to another. Now Jehu said to him that 
had charge of the vestures: Bring forth vestments for all the 
worshippers of Baal. And he brought them forth vestments. 
And Jehu went into the house of Baal, and said: Search, 
and look that there be here with you none of the servants of 
the Lord, but the worshippers of Baal only. When they said 
that there was no stranger there, and they were beginning 
their sacrifices, Jehu said to the guard and to the captains : 
Go in, and slay them ; let none come forth. And they smote 
them with the edge of the sword. And they brought forth 
the images out of the house of Baal, and burned them ; and 
they broke down the house of Baal, and made it a draught- 
house to this day. Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel, 
and because he had done thus the Lord foretold by His 
prophet, that his sons should reign over Israel for four gene- 
rations. 



244 KINGS. 

In those days the Lord began to cut Israel short: and Ha- 
zael took all the land beyond Jordan, and committed terrible 
ravages, as Eiisha had foretold. And Jehu slept with his 
fathers: and they buried him in Samaria. Jehoahaz (856- 
840), his son, reigned in his stead. And the time that Jehu 
reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty-eight years. 

But the Lord was not in the wind, and after the wind an 

earthquake, but the Lord was not iu the earthquake, and after the earth- 
quake a fire, but the Lord Avas not iu the fire. — 1 Kings, 19, 11, 12. 



142. ATHALIAH'S CRUELTY. HER DEATH. 

(2 Kings, 11, 12.) 

When Athaliah (884-877), the mother of Ahaziah, saw 
that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed 
royal. But Jehosheba, sister of Ahaziah, and wife of the 
high priest Jehoiada, took Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, who 
was not above one year old, with her into a secret bed-cham- 
ber, and shut him up there with his nurse, and she and her 
husband Jehoiada brought him up privately in the temple 
six years, during which time Athaliah reigned over the two 
tribes. In the seventh year Jehoiada assembled the rulers 
over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought 
them to him into the house of the Lord, He showed them 
the king's son and took an oath of them, to set him on the 
throne according to a concerted plan. The coronation was 
to take place on a Sabbath. On the fixed day Jehoiada 
caused the most important entrances to the temple to be 
guarded. He armed the commanders and captains with the 
shields and spears of king David, and ordered the body- 
guards, to form, with arms in hand, a close line across the 
court of the altar and around the person of Jehoash. "When 
all was ready, Johoiada brought the young Jehoash into the 
temple. He was made to stand upon a pillar in the court of 
the temple, the crown was placed upon his head, and the tes- 
timonials, or two stone tables of the Law, were held up above 
him, while the priests anointed him as king. Thus they 
made him king, and clapped their hands, and said : God save 
the king. And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard 
and of the people, she came into the temple of the Lord. 
And when she saw the child standing upon a pillar with the 
royal crown upon his head, and the princes and the trumpet- 
ers standing by him, and the people rejoicing and blowing 
wit!) trumpets, she rent her clothes and cried: Treason ! trea- 
son \ But Jehoiada commanded the captains of the hundreds 
to bring Athaliah to the valley of Cedron, and slay her there, 



KINGS. 245 

and lie gave order, that if any one came near to lielp her, he 
should be slain also ; therefore those that had the charge of 
her slaughter took her, led her to the gate of the kings mules 
and slew her there. And Jehoiada made a covenant between 
the Lord, and the king, and the people, that they should be 
the Lord's people. Then the people went into the house of 
Baal, and broke it down; his altars and his images they 
broke in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan, the priest of 
Baal, before the altars. And the high priest appointed offi- 
cers over the house of the Lord. 

JoASH^ (877-838) w^as seven years old when he began to 
reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. He did that 
which was right in the sight of the Lord the first twenty 
years of his reign, while Jehoiada lived and advised him, 
excepting that the high places were not taken away. Joash 
also attended to the repair of the Temple of the Lord, which 
was brought to decay by Jehoram, Athaliah, and her sons. 
At the king's commandment a chest was made, and set with- 
out at the gate of the house of the Lord. Then they made a 
proclamation through Jerusalem and Judah, to bring in to 
the Lord the contribution that Moses the servant of God laid 
upon Israel in the wilderness,^ and free-will offerings. And 
the princes and all the people rejoiced, and cast into the 
chest until they had given to the utmost of their means. So 
the Temple was restored to its former magnificence. 

Jehoiada died at the advanced age of 130 years, and was 
buried ia the city of David among the kings; because he had 
done good in Israel, both toward God, and toward his house. 
Now after the death of Jehoiada the priaces of Judah came 
and made obeisance to the king, seeking by unusual humility 
to dispose the king favorably towards their request, and at 
their suggestion Joash revived the worship of Baal and Ash- 
taroth. They forsook the house of the Eternal, the God of 
their fathers, and served the idols. Then the spirit of God 
endued Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, who had probably 
succeeded his father in the high-priesthood, and he stood up 
above the people, and said to them: Thus says the Lord: 
"Why do you transgress the commandments of the Lord ? 
You cannot prosper, because as you have forsaken the Lord, 
He has also forsaken you. And they conspired against 
him, and stoned him at the command of the king in 
the court of the house of God. And king Joash did not re- 

^ ti^XV Joash (whom Jehova bestowed), abbreviated, from Jehoash (the Lord 
gave)/ 

2 The half-shekel tax which was specially assigned by the Law to the sers'ice of 
the Tabernacle.— 2 Mos., 30, 13-16. 



246 KINGS. 

member the kindness which Zechariah's father had shown to 
him, but slew his son. And when Zechariah died, he said : 
God will see (this) and require (my blood). ^ This atrocious 
act was followed by speedy punishment. 

Hazael invaded Judah, and the Syrian army, though com- 
paratively few in number, defeated a large force of Joash's 
army, and when Hazael set his face to go also against Jeru- 
salem, Joash took all the hallowed things that his fathers, and 
he himself had dedicated, and all the gold that v/as found in 
the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the king's house, 
and sent it to Hazael: and he went away from Jerusalem. 
Then disease came upon the king, and while sick, he was 
slain by a conspiracy of his servants. Amaziah his son, 
reigned in his stead. 

Through all generations the wicked shall not go unpunished. — Prov., 
11, 21. 

Listen to counsel and receive instruction, that thou mayest be Avise in 
thy latter days. — Prov., 19, 20. 



143. THE PROPHET JOEL. C. E. BETWEEN 877 
AND 847. 

JoEL,2 the son of Pethuel, in all probability lived in Jerusalem in the 
early part of Joash's reign ; he aided Jehoiada the high priest, in urging 
the people to repair the Temple and to return to the service of the Lord. 
His prophecy was occasioned by the desolating effects of a terrible plague 
of locusts, accompanied with scorching drought. The prophet called the 
despairing people to humiliation and repentance, but also announced in 
the name of the gracious God deliverance from the present calamity and 
a happy future; he promised the destruction of all nations hostile to 
God's people, and the extension of the blessings of true religion through 
this people to heathen lands : 

Blow ye the trumpet in Zion ; sound an alarm in my holy mountain ! 
let all the inhabitants of the laud tremble ! for the day of the Lord 
cometh ; for it is near ! A day of darkness and gloom ; a day of clouds, 
and of cloudy night. As the morning light spreadeth itself upon the 
mountains, there cometh a numerous people and a strong; there hath 
not been its like from all eternity, nor shall be after it for ever and ever. 
A fire devoureth before them, and behind them a flame burneth; the land 
is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilder- 
ness ! yea, nothing escapeth them. Their ap])earanoe is like the appear- 
ance of horses, and like horsemen do they run. Like rattling chariots 
they leap on the tops of the mountains ; like the crackling flame of flro, 
which devoureth stubble, like a mighty host set in battle array. They 
run like mighty men ; they climb the Avail like men of Avar ; they march 
every one on his Avay ; they change not tlieir ranks ; they run to and fro 
in the city; they run upon the Avall, they climb up upon the houses ; they 

' A horror of their impious deed loncfpossossed the Jewish people, who believed 
that the blood was not to bo etiaced. but continued to bubble on the stonesi of the 
court, until the destruction of the Temple.— Jcrueal. Talmud, Taaiiith. Ibl. 09. 

2 "^NV (i. c. Jau is God). 



m 



KINGS. 247 

enter in at the windows like a thief. The earth quaketh before them, the 
heavens tremble ; the sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars 
refuse to shine. Yet even now, saith the Lord : Turn ye to Me with all 
vour heart, with fasting, with weeping, and Avith mourning ! And i-end 
your hearts, and not your garments, and turn to the Lord your God : 
for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, 
and repenteth of a threatened evil. 

Blow a cornet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call for a cessation from labor; 
assemble the people, sanctify the assembly, gather the elders, assemble 
infants and sucklings of the breast ; let the bridegroom go forth from his 
chamber, and the bride out of her closet. Let the priests, the ministers of 
the Eternal, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say : 
Spare Thy people, Lord, and deliver not thy heritage to reproach, that 
the nations should scoff at them. Wherefore should men say among the 
nations : Where is their God ? Then will the Eternal be jealous for His 
land, and pity His people. Yea, the Lord will answer and say to His 
people : Behold, I will send you the corn and the must, and the oil, and 
ye shall be satisfied therewith, and I will no more make you a disgrace 
among the nations : But I send the northerner ^ far away from you, and 
drive him into the land of drought and desert, his van toward the Eastern 
Sea, and his rear toward the Western Sea ; and his stench shall rise up, 
and his ill savor ascend. Fear not, land, rejoice and be glad. Fear 
not, ye beasts of the field, for the pastures of the wilderness grow green, 
for the tree beareth its fniit ; fig-tree and vine do yield their strength. 
And you, ye sons of Zion, rejoice and be glad in the Eternal your God ; 
for He giveth you the early rain when it is due, and causeth copious 
rains to come down on you, early and later rain — this, first of all.^ 

And it shall come afterwards, that I will pour out My Spirit on all 
flesh ; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall 
dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also upon the 
servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out My Spirit. 
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the 
Lord shall be delivered : for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be de- 
liverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall 
call. 



144. JEHOAHAZ AND JOASH, KINGS OF ISRAEL. 

ELISHA'S DEATH. AMAZIAH, UZZIAH, 

AND JOTHAM, KINGS OF JUDAH. 

(2 Kings, 1.3. 14. 2 Chron. 25-27.) 

Hazael and his son Ben-hadad continually oppressed 
Israel, as long as Jehoahaz (856-841), Jehu's son, reigned; 
for he walked in the sins, into which Jeroboam, the son of 
Nebat, had led Israel. Joash^' (841-825), also, the son of 
Jehoahaz, who participated for two years in the government 
of his father and then succeeded him, did what displeased 
the Lord. 

J The army of the locusts approaching from the north. 

-The first blessinj? of happier outward conditions. But there is a second, and 
far greater blessing to come. The showers of rain are but a prelude to the out 
pouring of the Spirit. 

3 Israel and Judah both had kings of this name and at the same time. The 
eame is true of Jcn^am. Care should be taken to avoid confusion. 



248 KINGS. 

At this time Elisha had fallen ill of his last sickness 
whereof he died.^ And Joash the king of Israel came down 
to him and wept over his face, and said in the very same 
words that Elisha used when Elijah was taken away: my 
father, my father! the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen 
thereof! And Elisha said to him: Take bow and arrows! 
and Joash did so. And Elisha said: Put thy hand upon 
the bow, and when he had done so, Elisha put his hands upon 
the king's hands and said: Open the window eastward!^ and 
he opened it. Then EHsha said: Shoot! and he shot. And 
Elisha said: The arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the 
arrow of deliverance from Syria; for thou shalt smite the 
Syrians in Aphek, till thou hast consumed them. Take the ar- 
rows, Elisha further said, and the king took them: Smite upon 
the ground, Elisha exclaimed, and he smote thrice, and stayed. 
And the man of God was wroth with him, and said: Thou 
shouldst have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou 
smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou 
shalt smite Syria but thrice. Soon after Elisha died, and 
they buried him.^ And it happened according to the words 
of Elisha, Joash recovered the cities Hazael had taken from 
Israel, and defeated the Syrians three times. 

Joash also subdued Amaziah, king of Judah. Amaziah 
(838-809), was, when he succeeded his father Joash, a God- 
fearing man; as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his 
hand, he slew his servants who had murdered his father. 
But their children he slew not, according to the Law of 
Moses, " that the children should not die for the sin of their 
fathers." Shortly afterward he marched against the Edom- 
ites,* in order to check their inroads upon his territory. He 
led his army into the Valley of Salt,^ smote ten thousand of 
the Edomites, and captured Selah,^' their capital city, and 
gave it the name of Joktheel, i. e., subdued hy God. But after 
this complete victory, Amaziah strangely adopted tlie gods 
of the nation he had conquered, and worshipped them as his 
gods . For this the anger of the Lord was kindled against him, 
and misfortune and judgment came upon himself and his 
kingdom. Impiety leads to presumption. Encouraged by 

1 It was now at least sixty-three years since his call ; so that he must at this 
time have been above ninety. 

2 Eastward, i. e., towards the scene of the recent Syrian Buccesses, Gilead. 

3 With a magnificent funeral. Josephus. 

4 AccoiTling to Chronicles, Amaziah had hired a larsre body of Israelite soldiers 
for this Idumean war, but, warned by a prophet, had dismissed them. These per- 
sons, disgusted at their treatment, ravaged the Jewish territory on their way 
back to Samaria. 

*The open plain called the Sabkah at the southern end of the Dead Sea. 
«'' Tfm Rock:'' or Pctra, about two days' journey to the north of the Galf Of 
Akabah, and somewhat farther to the Boutb of the Dead Sea. 



KINGS. 249 

his victory over the Edomites, Amaziah sent a boasting mes- 
sage to Joash, king of Israel, and challenged him to battle. 
To which message Joash returned this answer: The thistle 
that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, 
saying: G-ive thy daughter to my son to wife: and there 
passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down 
the thistle. Thou hast utterly smitten Edom, and thy heart 
has lifted thee up; glory in this, and tarry at home; for why 
wilt thou meddle with misfortune ? that thou shouldst fail, 
even thou, and Judah with thee ? But Amaziah would not 
hear. Therefore Joash king of Israel went up; and they 
looked one another in the face at Beth-shemesh,^ which 
belonged to Judah. Amaziah was defeated and taken pris- 
oner. The conqueror came to Jerusalem, broke down a part 
of its wall, and pillaged the temple and the palace. Having 
taken hostages for peace, Joash released the captured king 
and returned home. 

Joash, having reigned sixteen years, died, and his son 
Jeroboam succeeded him. Amaziah lived fifteen years after 
the death of Joash king of Israel. Then a conspiracy was 
made against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish, but 
was pursued and slain there. Then his dead body was taken 
up and carried to Jerusalem, where a royal funeral was made 
for Amaziah. He had reigned 29 years, and was succeeded 
by his son Uzziah (or Azariah).^ 

Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, 
and he reigned fifty -two years in Jerusalem. He did that 
which was right in the sight of the Lord: and, as long as 
he sought the Lord, God made him prosper. For God 
helped him against the Philistines, the Arabians, and the 
Ammonites; he obtained access to the Eed Sea, and built 
JElath,"^ rendering it again a suitable station for trade with 
the East. Towers were built and wells were dug in the 
maritime plain and the Idumean desert for the king's numer- 
ous flocks. Moreover Uzziah repaired the wall of Jerusa- 
lem, which had been broken down by Joash, the king of 
Israel, building towers at the gates. He armed the fortifica- 
tions with newly-invented military engines, for shooting 
arrows and great stones. He kept on foot a great host of 
fighting men, and his fame spread far abroad. 

But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to do 
wickedly; for he transgressed against the Lord his God, and 

^ About fifteen miles from Jerusalem. 

2 Both are words of nearly the same signification. n^Tj;^, Uzziah— ih.e strength 
ofJah; n''"lTXN -^^ariaA— whom Jah assists. 

3 Elath, or Eloth, was near Ezion-Geber, in the extreme recess of the Gulf of 
Akabah, 



250 KINGS. 

went into the temple of the Lord to burn incense upon the 
altar of incense. The priests boldly withstood the king and 
said to him: It appertaineth not to thee, Uzziah, to burn in- 
cense to the Lord, but to the priests, the sons of Aaron; go 
out of the sanctuary; for thou hast trespassed; neither shall 
it be for thy honor from the Lord God. But Uzziah was 
wroth, and while he was wroth with the priests, the leprosy 
rose up in his forehead. And the priests thrust him out 
from thence; nay, he himself was so struck with the judg- 
ment, that he hastened from the sanctuary. Thus Uzziah 
the king was a leper to the day of his death, secluded in a 
separate house, according to the directions of the Law 
(3 Mos. 13. 46), and Jotham his son judged the people of the 
land, and after his father's death, he succeeded him in the 
Government. 

Jotham (758-742) was 25 years old when he began to 
reign, and he reigned 16 years in Jerusalem, having been 
previously regent about seven years. He did that which 
was right in the eyes of the Lord. He built the higher gate 
of the house of the Lord. He also made an expedition 
against the Ammonites, overcame them in battle, and ordered 
them to pay tribute. Toward the close of his reign, Rezin, 
king of Damascus, began, in alliance with Pekah king of 
Israel, those attacks on Judah, which proved so disastrous 
under Ahaz, Jotham's successor. Jotham slept with his 
fathers and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead. 

He, who being often I'eproved, hardens his neck, shall suddenly be 
destroyed, and that Avithout remedy. — Prov. 29, 1. 

The beginning of strife is as when one lets out water ; therefore, before 
contention breaks out, give it up. — Prov. 17, 14. 

My son, forget not My teaching, and let thy heart observe My precepts ! 
For length of days, and years of life, and peace shall they multiply to 
thee.— Prov. 3. 1,2. 

Seek not greatness for thyself, neither be covetous for honor. — Sayings 



145. JEROBOAM 11. THE PROPHET JONAH. 

(2 Kings, 14.) 

Jeroboam, the second of that name (823-782), the thir- 
teenth king of Israel, and the fourth of the house of Jehu, 
reigned forty-one years at Samaria. He departed not from 
the sins of Jeroboam, nevertheless his reign was prosperous. 
He reconquered Ammon and Moab, restored the coast of 
Israel from Hamath to the Dead Sea,* according to the word 

' Jeroboam recovered the old boundaries of the Holy Laud to the north, the east, 
and the southeast. 




Jonah Thrown into the Sea (p. 251). 

Livy I)/pf Pholo Eng.Co., Baltimoit. 



KINGS. 251 

of the Lord, which He spoke by the hand of His servant 
Jonah/ the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gatli- 
hepher"^ and Hved at the time of Jeroboam II. For the Lord 
saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter, and He 
said not that He would blot out the name of Israel from 
under heaven, but saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the 
son of Joash. This oracle appears to be lost. 

But the same prophet was sent by God to the great city of Nineveh, 
which stood on the banks of the river Tigris.^ Arise, was the Lord's 
word to Jonah, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it ; for 
their wickedness has come up before Me. But Jonah rose up to flee from 
the presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa,'^ and he found a ship, 
paid the fare thereof, and Avent down into it, to go from the presence of 
the Lord. But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there 
was a mighty tempest, so that the ship was like to be broken. Then the 
mariners were afraid, and every man cried to his god, and they cast forth 
the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it. Jonah, how- 
ever, had gone down into the ship ; and he lay, and Avas fast asleep. So 
the ship-master came to him, and said : What meanest thou, O sleeper "? 
arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that avb 
perish not. And they said one to another : Come, and let us cast lots,^ 
that we may know for Avhose cause this evil is upon us. So they cast 
lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. Then said they to him : Tell us, for 
whose cause this evil is upon us : What is thy occupation ? Whence comest 
thou ? What is thy country ? and of Avhat people art thou ? And he said : 
I am a HebreAV ; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who has made 
the sea and the dry land. Then Avere the men exceedingly afraid, and 
said : Why hast thou done this ? (For he had told them that he fled from 
the presence of God. ) And Jonah said : Take me up, and cast me forth 
into the sea, so shall the sea be calm to you ; for I knoAV that for my sake 
this great tempest is iipon you. Nevertheless the men rowed hard to 
bring the ship to the land, but they could not ; for the sea Avrought, and 
was tempestuous against them. So they took up Jonah, and cast him 
forth into the sea ; and the sea ceased from its raging. But the Lord had 
prepared a great iish to swallow up Jonah, and Jonah Avas in the belly of 
the fish three days and three nights. And Avhen he had prayed to the 
Lord the fish A^omited out Jonah upon the dry land. 

Now the Avoi'd of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, to go to 
Nineveh. So Jonah arose, and went to Nineveh. And he entered into 
the city a day's journey, and cried, and said : Yet forty days, and NincA-eh 
shall be overthroAvn. Noav the people of Nineveh believed that God had 
sent Jonah, and that the words he spoke Avould come true. And the king 
rose up from his throne, took off his royal robes, put on sackcloth, and 
sat in ashes. And he sent Avord through the city, saying : Let neither 

^ njr (.i. e. a dove). He is declared by an old tradition to have been the young 
prophet who anointed Jehu. 

2 A town of lower Galilee, in Zebulun. 

'• This center of the Assyrian empire was very lar^e. and contained at least six 
hundred thousand inhabitants. Ancient Avriters tell' vis, that its Avails Avere a hun- 
dred feet hi<rh. sixty miles round, nearly three times the size of London— and it 
Avas defpnded by no' less than fifteen hundred towers. 

* Called also Japho, was in the territory of Dan ; and an ancient sea-port of Pales- 
tine. 

*This ancient relifrious custom of casting lots to discover great sinners seems to 
have grown out of the idea that Providence interposes visibly in all human afl'airs, 
and never brings notorious judgments but for notorious sins. 



252 KINGS. 

man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor 
drink water : but let all be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to 
God. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from His 
fierce anger, that we perish not 1 Now when God saw their works, that 
they turned from their evil way. He repented of the evil He had threat- 
ened against them : and He did it not. 

But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry, and prayed 
to the Lord, and said : I pray thee, Lord, was not this my saying, 
•when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled the first time; fori 
knew that Thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of 
great kindness, and repentest Thee of the evil. Therefore now, Lord, 
take, I beseech thee, my life from me ; for it is better for me to die than 
to live. Then said the Lord : Doest thou well to be angry ! So Jonah 
went to a place outside of the city, and made a booth there, and sat down 
under it, to see what would become of the city. And the Lord caused a 
gourd, or vine, to grow up in one night over his booth, that it might be a 
shadow over his head. And Jonah was very glad for the gourd. But 
God prepared a worm vs^hen the morning rose the next day, and it smote 
the gourd that it withered. And when the sun did arise, God prepared a 
vehement east wind ; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he 
fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said : It is better for me to die 
than to live. And God said to Jonah : Doest thou well to be angry for 
the gourd 1 And he said : I do well to be angry, even to death. Then 
said the Lord : Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for which thou hast 
not labored, neither madest it grow ; which came up in a night, and 
perished in a night : And should not I spare Nineveh, that gi-eat city, 
wherein are more than a hundred and twenty thousand little children, so 
young that they cannot tell their right hands from their left ?i 



146. THE PROPHETS AMOS, HOSEA. 

Amos 2 (810-785) was a shepherd and dresser of sycamore trees of Te- 
koah, in the south of Judah, about six miles from Bethlehem. He was 
called by God's spirit to be a prophet and sent in the reigns of Uzziah in 
Judah, and Jeroboam II in Israel to Bethel, the place where calf-worship was 
specially practiced. In the time of Jeroboam II Israel had been restored 
to its ancient limits and prosperity. But Avith this outward prosperity 
had come luxury, pride, idolatry, immorality, and oppression to the poor. 
Accoi-dingly this prophet was raised up to declare coming judgments, to 
reprove wickedness, and to threaten Jeroboam and the powerful persons 
of Samaria with the anger of God. In the midst of their careless security, 
he showed them a coming exile and death. For already the Assyrian 
power was threatening, and, at the news of its rapid progress, all western 
Asia was seized with terror. Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, denounced 
Amos to king Jeroboam, as a conspirator, and, exaggerating the exprcs- 

* In this book are contained some moral teachings which were addressed at the 
same time to the prophets and to the people. The prophets, faithful to their vo- 
cation, should always brand the vices of the people and announce to sinners the 
approaching heavenly chastisement ; but they should not believe tlieir honor com- 
promised ii' the prophecy is not accomplished, for their warniuj^s should have for 
aim to correct the sinners and to render them worthy of the clemency of the Lord, 
always ready to pardon. At the same time the author combats a national preju- 
dice, and shows by the example ol the heathen sailors and the Ninivitos that the 
Divine clemency is not alono reserved to the Hebrews, ))ut that (lod extends His 
bounty over all men, as soon as they call upon Him and humble themselves before 
Him. 

" DiDJ,' (borne up, sustained). 



KINGS. 253 

sions of the prophet, he accused him of having said that Jeroboam him- 
self would die by the sword. The king, as it seems, attached no import- 
ance to these Avords ; for Amaziah said with bitterness to Amos : Go, thou 
seer ! flee into the land of Judah ! there eat thy bread, and there prophesy ! 
but prophesy no more at Bethel ; for it is the king's sanctuary, and it'is 
the king's abode. Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah : I was no 
prophet, nor a prophet's son ;i I was a shepherd and a gatherer of syca- 
more fruit, and the Lord took me from the flock; and the Lord said to 
me : Go, prophesy to my people Israel ! Now, therefore, hear the word 
of the Lord : Thou sayest : Prophesy not against Israel, and drop not 
thy word against the house of Isaac! Therefore thus saith the Lord: 
Thy wife shall be put to shame in the city, and thy sons and daughters 
shall fall by the sword ; thy land shall be divided by the line, and thou 
shalt die in a polluted land, and Israel shall surely be led captive from 
their own land. 

The severity of this sentence is justified by the general immorality 
prevalent in Israel (2, 6-16). And then he sets before them the coming 
ruin of the nation : Hear these words, which the Lord speaketh against 
you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up 
from the land of Egypt. You only have I known of all the families of 
the earth ; therefore will I punish you for all your iniquities. Can two 
walk together, unless they agree together ? Will the lion roar in the 
forest, Avhen he seeth no prey? will the young lion cry aloud from his 
den, if he have nothing to seize? Can a bird fall into a snare upon the 
earth, where none is set for him? Will one take up a snare from the 
ground, when it hath caught nothing? Shall a trumpet be blown in the 
city, and the people not be afraid ? Shall there be evil in a city, and the 
Lord hath not done it ? Surely the Lord God doeth nothing, but He 
revealeth His secret to His servants the prophets. When the lion roareth, 
who will not fear ? When the Lord God speaketh, who will not proph- 
esy? Proclaim ye in the palaces at Ashdod, and in the palaces in the 
land of Egypt, and say : Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of 
Samaria, and behold the great tumults in the midst thereof, and the 
oppressed in the midst thereof; For they have no care to do right, saith 
the Lord ; they treasui'e up the spoils of rapine and robbery in their pal- 
aces. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God : An enemy shall encompass 
the land ; and shall bring down thy strength from thee, and thy palaces 
shall be plundered. 

Therefore the wise man shall be silent at that time, for it shall be an 
evil time. Seek ye good, and not evil, that ye may live : then shall the 
Lord the God of hosts be with you, as ye boast. Hate ye evil, and love 
good, and establish justice in the gate ; it may be that the Lord God of 
hosts will have pity upon the remnant of Joseph. Therefore, the Lord, 
the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus : Wailing shall be in all streets ; 
they shall say in all the highways : Alas ! alas ! They shall call the hus- 
bandman to mourning, and those who are skillful in lamentation, to wail- 
ing. And in all the vineyards shall be sounds of woe ; for I will pass 
through the midst of thee, saith the Lord. Woe to you that desire the 
day of the Lord ! What is the day of the Lord to you ? It shall be 
darkness, and not light. As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear 
met him; or went into a house and leaned his hand on a wall, and a 
serpent bit him. So shall the day of the Lord be darkness, and not hght, 
even thick darkness, and no brightness in it. I hate, I despise your 
feasts ; I have no delight in your solemn assemblies. When you ofler to 

* A prophet's son, that is a disciple of the prophets, and instructed in their 
schools. Ftfr the men trained in the colleges under i)rophctic superintendeuce 
were called " the sous of the prophets."— Compare page 228, note 2. 



254 KINGS. 

Me burnt-offerings and your meat-offerings, I will not accept them ; neither 
will 1 look upon the peace-offerings of your fatlings. Take ye away from 
Me the noise of your songs, and the melody of your psalteries let me not 
hear! But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a 
mighty stream. 

And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord God, that I will 
cause the sun to go down at noon, and I Avill darken the earth in the clear 
day : I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamen- 
tation ; I will bring sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon all heads ; 
I will make it as the mourning for an only son, and its end as a day of 
bitter woe. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send 
a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for Avater, but of 
hearing the words of the Lord : and men shall wander from sea to sea, 
and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the 
word of the Lord, and shall not find it. 

HoseaI (784-723), the son of Beeri, commenced his prophetical career 
towards the close of the reign of Jeroboam 11. He predicted the speedy 
ruin of Jehu's race, and the dissolution of the kingdom of Israel. There 
must, in this epoch, already have existed numerous elements of confusion 
and anarchy. Jeroboam died in the forty-first year of his reign, and his 
son Zachariah (772) did not ascend the throne until eleven or twelve 
years afterward. It is probable that at the death of Jeroboam the kingdom 
of Israel was torn by factions, who disputed the right of Zachariah to the 
throne, or who wished to annihilate the kingdom. The discourses of the 
prophet Hosea, which, in part, belong to this epoch, confirm these suppo- 
sitions. In a discourse pronounced in the middle of the troubles which 
followed the interregnum, Hosea expresses himself thus : Their heart is 
divided; now shall they be found faulty. He shall break down their 
altars ; He shall spoil their images. For now they shall say : We have 
no king, because we feared not the Lord ; what then should a king do to 
us 1 They have spoken deceitful words, swearing falsely in making a cove- 
nant; thus judgment springeth up as hemlock in the furrows of the field. 

Hosea's prophecies are addressed almost equally to Israel and Judah, 
whose dissensions are deeply deplored, their captivity foretold, and their 
final restoration promised. 

The Lord said to Hosea : Go, take to thee a wife. So he went and 
took a wife, who bore him a son. And the Lord said to him : Call his 
name Jezkeel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jez- 
reel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause the kingdom of the house of Israel 
to cease. Then his wife bore a daughter. And God said to him : Call her 
name Lo-ruhamah Cunpitied) ; for I will no more have pity upon the 
house of Israel ; but I will utterly take them away. Kow when she again 
bore a son, God said: Call his name Lo-ammi (not-my-people) ; for yc 
are not my people, and I will not be your God. Yaiious judgments were 
denounced against the wickedness and idolatry of Israel. 

Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel; for the Lord hath a 
controversy with the inhabitants of the land, for tliere is no truth, nor 
m(;rcy, nor knowledge of God in the land. Cursing and lying, and kill- 
ing, and stealing, and adultery, have broken forth, and blood toucheth 
blood. Therefore, shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth 
therein shall languish, together with the beasts of the field, and the fowls 
of heaven; yea, even the fish of the sea shall perish. My people is de- 
stroyed for Tack of knowledge : since thou hast rejected knowledge, I will 
also rejcict thee, so that thou shalt be no })riest to ]\Ie ; since thou hast 
forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. As they 
Iiave become great, so have they sinncid against JNIe : therefore will I 
change their glory into shame. 

»J,\L-:hn (dolivcrauec, salcty)- 



KINGS. 255 

O Ephraim, what shall I do to thee"? Judah, Avhat shall I do to 
thee"? For your goodness is like the morning- cloud, and like the early 
dew, which vanisheth away. Therefore I have hcAvu them by the proph- 
ets, I have slain them by the words of My mouth, and My judgments 
have gone forth like the light. For I desired mercy, and Liot sacrifice, 
and tiie knowledge of God more than burnt-offerings. But they, like 
Adam, have transgressed the covenant; even there have they dealt un- 
faithfully Avith Me. Gilead is a city of them that do iniquity ;' she is full 
of footsteps of blood- As troops of robbers lying in wait for a man, so 
is the company of priests ; they murder in the way to Shechem ; yea, 
they commit heinous Avickedness. I have seen a horrible thing in' the 
house of Israel; there Ephraim committeth idolatry, Israel is polluted. 
For thee also, O Judah, a harvest is appointed ! 

O Israel, turn to the Lord thy God ; for thou hast fallen by thy iniquity. 
Take with you words, and turn to the Lord : say to him : Take away all 
iniquity, and receive us graciously, Avhen we offer to thee the sacrifices of 
our lips ! Assyria shall not help us ; we will not ride on horses ; and no 
more will Ave say to the AA'ork of our hands : Ye are our gods ; for in thee 
the fatherless findeth mercy. I Avill heal their rebellion ; i Avill loA-e them 
freely : for My anger is turned aAA-ay from them. I Avill be as the dcAV to 
Israel ; he shall bloom as the lily, and strike his roots like Lebanon. His 
branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive-tree, and his 
fragrance as Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow shall gather 
strength ; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine : the scent 
thei'eof shall be as the Avine of Lebanon. Ephraim shall say : What haA^e 
I to do any more Avith idols ? I Avill hear him ; I Avill care tor him ; I Avill 
be like a green olive-tree. From Me shall thy fruit be found. Who is 
wise, that he may understand these things 1 prudent, that he may know 
them ? for the ways of the Lord are right, and the righteous shall Avalk 
in them : but the transgressors shall fall therein. 



147. THE DESTRUCTION OF THE KINGDOM OP 
ISRAEL. 

(2 Kings, 14-17.) 

Israel, hoAs^ever, did not hearken to the words of the 
prophets. In the last fifty years the confusion grew greater 
every day, and the wickedness continued to increase. Mur 
der followed murder, usurper succeeded usurper; each pre- 
paring the kingdom for its final overthrow. Jeroboam's 
death was followed by anarchy for eleven years, and then 
his son Zachariah reigned for six months. Shallum the 
son of Jabesh (7*72) conspired against him, slew him, and 
reigned in his stead. Thus was fufilled the word of the 
Lord, which He spoke to Jehu, saying: Thy sons shall sit on 
the throne of Israel to the fourth generation. Shallum 
reigned one month in Samaria; for Menahem (772-761) the 
son of Gadi smote Shallum, and slew him, and reigned in his 
stead ten years in Samaria. He did that which was evil in 
the sight of the Lord. 

Now Pul the king of Assyria came against the land, and 
Menahem gave him a thousand talents^ of silver, that he 

^ Que thousand kikar's weiorht amounts to about two millions and a half dollars. 



256 KINGS. 

miglit be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. 
And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the 
men of wealth, of each main fifty shekels of silver, to give 
to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned 
back, and stayed not in the land. And Menahem slept with 
his fathers, and Pekahiah (7 6 1-7 5 9J his son, reigned in his 
stead. Also he did evil,- and Pekan, the son of Remaliah 
(759-739), a captain of his, conspired against him, smote 
and killed him, and reigned in his place twenty years. In 
the days of Pekah came Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, 
and took Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and 
carried the people captive to Assyria. 

Then Hoshea the son of Elah (729-721), after an inter- 
regnum of at least eight years, established himself as 
Pekah's successor. Hoshea was the nineteenth and last king 
of Israel, after the revolt of the ten tribes against Solomon's 
son. He reigned in Samaria nine years. Pie was not a 
godly king, but he was less wicked than his predecessors.^ 

Against him came up Shalmaneser, king of Assyria; and 
Hoshea became his servant, and rendered him tribute. But 
the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea; for he had 
sent messengers to So,^ king of Egypt, and sent not up his 
tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year; 
therefore the king of Assyria went up to Samaria, and 
besieged it three years, and in the ninth year of Hoshea, the 
king of Assyria took Samaria, made Hoshea prisoner, and 
put an end to the kingdom of Israel. It had lasted 215 
years. The king of Assyria carried Israel away to a distant 
part of his own dominions. And so it was, because the 
children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, 
who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, and 
had feared other gods, and walked in the statutes of the 
heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of 
Israel. Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel, and 
removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the 
tribe of Judah. So was Israel carried away out of their own 
land to Assyria, according as the Lord had spoken through 
the prophets. 

Now the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, 
Cutha,^ etc., and placed them in the country of Samaria. 
At the beginning of their dwelling there they feared not the 

1 He removed from the frontier-cities the guards placed there by his predeces- 
sors to prevent their subjects from worshipping at Jerusalem. 

2 Either the Seuechos (Seu'exos) of Manetho, or Sabaco, the father of the first 
named. 

3Josephus speaks of a river of that name in Persia, and fixes the residence 
of the Cuthcaus in the interior of Persia and Media. 



KINGS. 257 

Lord, and He sent lions among them, whicli slew some of 
them; for the beasts of the field . had doubtless increased 
after the desolation, occasioned by the Assyrian invasions. 
Then application was made to the king; and one of the 
priests who had been carried away was brought back to 
teach the people the manner of the God of the land. So 
the new inhabitants ^ of the land feared the Lord and served 
their own gods, after the manner of their countrymen at 
home. 

148. THE PROPHET ISAIAH. 

In the year in which King Uzziah died the Lord called Isaiah ^ (754- 
629) the son of Amoz^ to the prophetical office, and he announced the 
will of God during the long period of half a century.* 

He describes his original inauguration with the following words : In 
the year, in Avhich king Uzziah died, I saw the Loi'd, sitting on a throne, 
high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Around 
him stood seraphs ; each one of them had six wings ; with two he covered 
his foce, W'ith two he covered his feet, and with two he did fly. And one 
called to another, and said : . 

Holy, holt, holy is Jehovah of hosts, 
The whole earth is full of his glory. 
And the foundations of the thresholds were shaken with the voice of their 
cry. And the temple was filled with smoke. Then I said : Alas for me ! 
I am undone ! I am a man of unclean lips, and dAvell among a 
people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the king, Jehovah 
of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphs to me, having in his hands 
a glowing stone, which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. 
And he touched my mouth, and said : Behold this toucheth thy lips, 
and thy iniquity is taken aAvay, and thy sin is expiated. 

And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying : AVhom shall I send, and 
who will go for us 1 And I said : Behold here am I ; send me ! And he 
said : Go and say thou to this people : Hear ye, indeed, but understand 
not ; see ye, indeed, but perceive not ! Make the heart of this people 
gross ; make their ears dull, and blind their eyes; that they may not see 
with their eyes, nor hear with their ears, nor perceive with their hearts, 
and turn, and be healed ! Then said I : How long. Lord ? He said : 
Until the cities be laid waste, so that there be no inhabitant, and the 
houses, so that there be no man, and the land be left utterly desolate. 
Until Jehovah have removed the men far away, and there be great deso- 
lation in the land. And though there be a tenth part remaining in it, 
even this shall perish by a second destruction ; yet as, Avhen the terebinth 
and the oak are cut down, their stem remaineth alive, so shall a holy race 
be the stem of the nation. 

Ptemonstrating against the corruptions prevailing among 
his contemporaries in the kingdom of Judah, he exclaims: 

1 Called (DTI--^) Cutheans by the Jews and Samaritans by the Greeks. — 
Josephus. 
^ \7Vy!VJ^ i. e. Salvation of Jahu (Jah or Jahu, a shortened form of Jehovah). 

3 Rabbinical tradition represents Amoz as the brother of king Amaziah. and it is 
on this ground that he has been called the royal jwophet. 

■* There is a Rabbinical tradition that the prophet was put to death by king 
Manasseh, being sawn asunder. 



258 KINGS. 

Hear, O ye heavens, and give ear, O earth! for Jehovah speak eth: 
*' I have nourished and brono:ht up children, and they have rebelled 
against Me. The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib ; but 
Israel knoweth not his Lord ; my people do not regard Him." 

Ah, sinful nation! a people laden with iniquity ! a race of evil-doers j 
degenerate children ! They have forsaken Jehovah ; they have despised 
the Holy One of Israel ; they have gone backward. Where can ye be 
smitten again, since ye renew your rebellion 1 The whole head is sick 
and the whole heart faint ; from the sole of the foot even to the head, 
there is no soundness in it ; it is all bruises, and stripes, and fresh wounds, 
neither pressed, nor bound up, nor softened with ointment. Your coun- 
try is desolate ; your cities are burnt Avith fire ; your lands, strangers de- 
vour them before your eyes ; they have become desolate, destroyed by an 
enemy. And the daughter of Zion is left, as a shed in a vineyard ; as a 
hut in a garden of cucumbers, so is the delivered city. Had not Jehovah 
of hosts left us a small remnant, Ave had soon become as Sodom ; we had 
been like to Gomorrah. 

Hear ye the word of Jehovah, ye princes of Sodom ; give ear to the in- 
struction of our God, ye people of Gomorrah ! What to Me is the mul- 
titude of your sacrifices ? saith Jehovah ; I am satiated with the burnt- 
offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts ; in the blood of bullocks, and 
of lambs, and of goats, I have no delight. When ye come to appear 
before Me, who hath required this of you, that ye trample on My courts ? 
Bring no more false oblations ; incense is an abomination to Me, the new 
moon also, and the sabbath, and the solemn assembly ; iniquity and festivals 
I cannot endure. Your new moons and your feasts My soul hateth ; they 
are a burden to Me ; I am weary of bearing them. When ye spread 
forth your hands, I will hide My eyes from you ; yea, when ye multiply 
prayers, I will not hear ; your hands are full of blood ! Wash you ; 
make you clean ; put away your evil doings from before My eyes ; cease 
to do evil; learn to do well; seek justice; relieve the oppressed; defend 
the fatherless ; plead for the widow ! 

Come, now, and' let us contend, saith Jehovah ! Though your sins be 
as scarlet, they shall be white as snow ; though they be red as crimson, 
they shall be like wool. If ye Avill consent, and be obedient, ye shall con- 
sume the good of the land. But if ye refuse, and be rebellious the sword 
shall consume you ; for the mouth of Jehovah hath said it. 

Triumphant song over the fall of Babylon: 

So when Jehovah shall have given thee rest from thy sorrow and thy 
distress, and from the hard bondage which was laid upon thee, then shalt 
thou utter this song over the king of Babylon, and say, " How hath the 
tyrant fallen ! the tribute ceased ! Jehovah hath broken the staff of the 
wicked, the rod of the tyrants, that smote the people in anger, with a con- 
tinual stroke, that lorded it over the nations in wrath with unremitted 
oppression. The Avhole earth is at rest, is quiet ; they break forth into 
singing. Even the cypress trees exult over thee, and the cedars of Leb- 
anon ; since thou art fallen, 'no feller cometh up against us.' Hades ^ 
beneath is in commotion on account of thee, to meet thee at thy coming; 
he stirreth up before thee the shades, all the mighty of the earth ; he 
arouseth from their thrones all the kings of the nations ; they all accost 
thee, and say : ' Art thou, too, become weak as avc ? art thou become like 
us ■? ' Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the sound of thy 
harps. Vermin have become thy couch, and earth-worms thy covering. 
How art thou fallen from heaven ! Howl, son of the morning ! How 
art thou cast doAvn to the ground, thou that didst trample upon the 
nations ! Thou saidst in thy heart : * I will ascend to heaven above the 

> Hell, the regions of the dead. 



KINGS, 259 

stai's of God will I exalt my throne ; I will sit upon the mount of assem- 
bly in the farthest north. I will ascend above the height of the clouds ; 
I will be like the Most High.' But thou art brought down to the grave, 
to the depths of the pit. They that see thee gaze upon thee, and view thee 
attentively, (and sa}-^:) 'Is this the man that made the earth tremble? 
that did shake kingdoms ? that made the world a wilderness, and laid 
waste its cities, and dismissed not his captives to their homes ? ' All the 
kings of the nations, yea, all of them, lie down in glory, each in his own 
sepulchre ; but thou art cast forth without a grave, like a worthless 
branch ; covered with the slain, who are pierced by the sword, who go 
down to the stones of the pit, like a carcass, trampled under foot. Thou 
shalt not be joined with them in the grave, because thou hast destroyed 
thy country, and slain thy people; the race of evil-doers shall never 
more be named. Prepare ye slaughter for his children, for the iniquity of 
their fathers, that they may no more arise, and possess the earth, and fill 
the world with enemies ! " For I will arise against them, saith Jehovah 
of hosts, and I will cut off from Babylon the name and the remnant, pos- 
terity and offspring, saith Jehovah. I will make it the possession of the 
porcupine, and pools of water ; yea, I will sweep it away with the besom 
of destruction, saith Jehovah of hosts. 

It has been questioned, on internal grounds, whether this chapter and 
various other portions (40-66) of the book of Isaiah were written by that 
prophet, or by some other w^hom Ewald calls : " the Great Unnamed." 
A discussion of this question is inconsistent with the plan of this work. 
On Isaiah's style Ewald (Propheten, 1, 166) says: *'In Isaiah we see 

prophetic authorship reaching its culminating point 

In Isaiah, all kinds of talent and all beauties of prophetic discourse meet 
together so as mutually to temper and qualify each other; it is not so 
much any single feature that distinguishes him as the symmetry and per- 
fection of the whole." 



149. THE-PEOPHET MICAH. 

The prophet Micah ^ is called the Morasthite, that is a native of 
Moresheth,'-^ or some place of similar name. He prophesied from about 
759 to 710 C. E., and was therefore a contemporaiy of Isaiah, though he 
may not have borne the prophetic office quite so soon. His predictions 
regarded both kingdoms, Judah and Israel. There is considerable resem- 
blance between him and his contemporary, Isaiah. 

He threatens punishment on account of injustice and cor- 
ruption: 

Woe to them that devise iniquity, and contrive evil upon their beds ; 
when the morning is light, they practise it, because it is in the power of 
their hand. They covet fields, and take them by violence ; houses, and 
take them from their owners. They defraud a man of his house ; yea, a 
man of his inheritance. Therefore/thus saith Jehovah : Behold, against 
this race do I meditate evil, from Avhich ye shall not remove your necks, 
nor lift up your heads ; for it shall be a' time of evil. In that day shall 
this song be uttered concerning thee, and this sad lamentation be made : 
" We are utterly laid w^aste ; He hath changed the portion of my people ; 
how hath He torn it from me ! He hath taken away; and distributed our 
fields ! " Behold, thou shalt have no one henceforth, who shall draw out 
a line for a portion, in the congregation of Jehovah. 

^ n^'p, the full form of the name is ^H^D'D i. e. '* who is like Jahuf'' 

2 Identified with a small village near Elcutheropolis to the east where formerly 
the prophet's tomb was shown. 



260 KINGS. 

"Prophesy not/' (say they.) "O ye that prophesy!" If they proph- 
esy not concerning these things, the shame -will not depart. O' ye, that 
are called the house of Israel, is the spirit of Jehovah impatient? Are 
these His doings ? Are not My words kind to him, that walketh 
uprightly ? But long since hath My people risen ngainst Me, as an enemy j 
ye strip the mantle from the garment of those that pass by securely, as 
men returning from war. The women of My people ye cast out from 
their pleasant abodes ; ye deprive their children for ever of the substance 
which I gave them. Arise and depart ! This land is not your rest ! Un 
account of its pollution shall it be wasted, and given to utter destruction. 
If a man follow wind, and invent falsehood, and say : " I will prophesy to 
thee of wine and strong drink ! " he will be the prophet for this people. 

A glorious future is promised: 

But it shall come to pass in future times, that the mountain of the 
house of Jehovah shall be established above all the mountains, and 
exalted above the hills; and the nations shall floAv to it. And many 
nations shall go, saying: "Come, let us go up to the mountain of 
Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us His 
ways, and that we may walk in His paths ! " For from Zion shall go 
forth a law, and the word of Jehovah from Jerusalem. He shall be a 
judge of many nations, and an umpire of many kingdoms afar off. They 
shall beat their swords into plough-shares, and their spears into pi'uning- 
hooks; nation shall not lift up the sword against nation, neither shall 
they learn war any more. But they shall sit every one under his vine, 
and under his fig-tree, and none shall make them afraid ; the mouth of 
Jehovah of hosts hath spoken it. For all the nations walk every one in 
the name of its God, and we Avill walk in the name of Jehovah our God 
for ever and ever. In that day, saith Jehovah, I will gather the halting, 
and the far scattered I will assemble, and those whom I have afflicted. I 
will make the halting a remnant, and the far scattered a strong nation ; 
and Jehovah shall reign over them in mount Zion, henceforth, even 
for ever. 

I WILL look to Jehovah ; I will hope in the God of my salvation ; 
my God will hear me. Rejoice not over me, my enemy ! Though I 
have fallen, I shall arise ; though I sit in darkness, Jehovah shall be my 
light. I Avill bear the indignation of Jehovah, because I have sinned 
against Him ; until He maintain my cause, and execute judgment for me ; 
until He bring me to the light, and I behold His mei'cy. She, that is my 
enemy, shall see it, and shame shall cover her, that said to me : Where is 
Jehovah thy God? My eyes shall gaze upon her; soon shall she be 
trodden down, as the mire of the streets. 

The day cometh, when thy walls are to be built; in that day shall the 
decree be far removed. In that day shall they come to thee from Assyria, 
and the cities of Egypt, and from Egypt to the river, from sea to sea, 
from mountain to niountain. But first the land shall be desolate on 
account of its inhabitants, for the fruit of their doings. 

Who is a God like thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by trans- 
gression, in the remnant of His inheritance'? He retaineth not His anger 
ior ever, for He delighteth in mercy. He Avill again have compassion on 
us, He will blot out our iniquities ; yea, thou wilt cast all our sins into 
the depths of the sea ! Thou wilt show faithfulness to Jacob, and mercy 
to Abraham, which thou swearest to our fathers from the days of old. 

150. AHAZ KING OF JUDAII. 

(2 Kings, IG. 2 Chronicles, 2S.) 

Ahaz (742-726) succeeded his father Jotham at the age 



KINGS. 2G1 

of twenty years, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. 
He was a very wicked and impious prince, worse than any 
preceding king of Judah. He offered sacrifices to idols, 
burnt incense in the high places, on the hills, and under every 
green tree. He even made his son to pass through the fire,^ 
according to the abominations of the heathen. Therefore 
the Lord stirred up against him Eezin, king of Syria, and 
Pekah, king of Israel, who jointly invaded his land with a 
powerful army and threatened to destroy, or to dethrone, the 
house of David. 

The prophet Isaiah was then directed to go to meet Ahaz, to support 
and comfort him and his people Avhen their hearts were moved with fear 
" as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind." Isaiah encouraged 
the king to turn to God, and trust in His promises concerning David and 
his house. He declared the will of the Lord, that Kezin and Pekah 
should not succeed in their design, comparing them to two firebrands 
nearly burned out, and exhibiting smoke rather than flame. — Isa. vii. 

But Ahaz would not seek the Lord his God, or return to Him from his 
evil ways. The next year after, God brought again upon him the same 
two confederates, who divided their hosts into three armies; the first 
under Rezin, king of Syria, the second under Pekah, king of Israel, and 
the third under Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim ; and with these three 
armies they invaded his kingdom in three different parts at the same time. 
They prevailed at the first onset; each defeated the army of Judah- 
Zichri took Jerusalem, where he slew Maasetah, the king's son, and 
most of the chief governors and great men of the kingdom, whom he 
found there. And both the armies of Israel, on their return, carried with 
them vast spoils, and above two hundred thousand persons, whom they 
had taken captive, with the intention of selling them for bond-men, and 
bond-women. But a prophet from God having severely rebuked them for 
this their excessive cruelty towards their brethren, whom God had deliv- 
ered into their hands, the elders of the land, fearing that a like evil 
would come upon themselves for a punishment, would not permit them to 
bi'ing the captives to Samaria ; whereupon they were clothed, and sup- 
plied out of the spoils, and again sent back to their own homes. 

And the land was no sooner delivered from these enemies, than it was 
again invaded by others ; for the Edomites and the Philistines seeing 
Judah brought thus low, took the opportunity to seize on those parts 
which lay next to them. 

Now Ahaz, continuing still hardened in his iniquity, would 
not seek the Lord his God, but contrary to the warnings of 
the prophet Isaiah, sent messengers to Tiglath-Pileser king 
of Assyria, sapng: I am thy servant and thy son: come up, 
and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out 
of the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me. 
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the 
house of the Lord, and in the treasures of the king's house, 
and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria. The king 
hearkened to him; for he went up against Damascus, took 
it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin. 

1 Whether the children were burnt, or only passed between two fires, it was 
designed as a kind of purification or dedication to their god. 



262 KINGS. 

After this, Tiglath-Pileser marciied against Pekah, and 
seized all that belonged to Israel beyond Jordan, and also 
all the land of Galilee, and then went forward to Jerusalem, 
but rather to get more money of Ahaz than to afford him 
any real help. When he had got from Ahaz all that he 
could (for the raising of which Ahaz cut the vessels of the 
Temple into pieces, and melted them down) he marched 
back to Damascus. Then Ahaz went there to meet the king 
of Assyria and to pay him that respect and obeisance which 
as his tributary he owed him. While he was at Damascus 
on this occasion, he saw there an idolatrous altar, of a form 
which he was much pleased with; whereupon, causing a pat- 
tern of it to be taken, he sent it to Ueijah, the high priest 
at Jerusalem, to have another made like to it; and on his 
return having removed the altar of the Lord out of its place 
in the Temple, and shut up the doors of the house of the 
Lord, he offered sacrifices to the gods of the Syrians and the 
gods of the other nations round him, upon the new altar. 
In this impiety he continued, till at length he perished in it, 
being cut off, before he had outlived half his days. He died 
in the thirty-si:fth year of his age. They brought him not 
into the sepulchres of the kings. ^ 

Though thou shouldst beat a fool in a mortar, among bruised wheat, 
with a pestle, yet will not his folly depart from him. — Pi-ov. 27, 22. 



151. HEZEKIAH, KING OF JUDAH. 

(2 Kings, 18-20. 2 Chron. 29-32.) 

Hezekiah'^ (726-698) was twenty -five years old when he 
began to reign; and he reigned twenty-nine years. He did 
that which was right in the sight of the Lord. Like him 
there was no king before him, for he turned to the Lord with 
all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, 
according to all the Law of Moses; neither after him arose 
there any like him. His confidence was placed wholly and 
fully in the Lord his God. He clave to the Lord, and de- 
parted not from following Him. 

In the first days of his reign he opened the long-closed 
doors of the Temple, and, assembling the priests and Levites, 
charged them to cleanse and set in order the house of God 
without delay. Immediately after this was done, the king 

1 There was pome system of examining the actions of their kings— honoring or 
disgracing their memories according to thoir deserts. This was customary in 
Ecypt, and a similar plan evidently was practised in Judah, at least in eome 
instances. 

'^ •in"' pin i- e. strength of Jaliu (of Jehovah.) 



f 



KINGS. 263 

sacrificed, as a great national expiation, sin-offerings and 
burnt- offerings. While these sacrifices were going on, the 
services of the public Temple-worship were re-instituted. 
The king and all the congregation bowed and worshipped, 
and the Levites, with their instruments, sang praises to the 
Lord in the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. Heze- 
Mah then summoned the people to Jerusalem to solemnize 
the Passover, and resolved that, as far as possible, the 
whole nation should take part in it, he invited also by 
messengers the inhabitants of the northern kingdom.^ 
Many derided the invitation, but others were wiser, and 
a very great congregation assembled at Jerusalem. And 
there was great joy; for since the great festival of Solomon 
(page 203), there had been no such feast in Judah. Now 
when all this was finished, all who had been engaged in the 
festival, went out to the cities of Judah, and removed the 
altars and idols, destroyed the images, high places, and groves 
throughout the land. Among the objects of worship then 
destroyed, was the brazen serpent which Moses had set up in 
the wilderness, it having been made by many the object of 
idolatrous worship. Hezekiah caused it to be broken to 
pieces. He then provided for the due celebration of spiritual 
Ys^orship, and for the general instruction of the people, circu- 
lating among them the proverbs of Solomon, and other 
sacred writings. (Comp. page 209.) 

All who are engaged in the service of the congregation, ought to act 
therein from proper religious motives ; then will their righteousness exist 
to eternity. — Sayings of the Fathers, 2, 2. 

152. SENNACHERIB INVADING JUDAH. 

(2 Kings, 18. 2 Chron., 32. Isa., 36.) 

Now Hezekiah, having removed all that was opposed to 
Divine worship in Judah, went forward with courage; he 
prevailed against the Philistines, and, encouraged by this 
success, and, indignant that God's people should be tributary 
to a heathen monarch, Hezekiah threw off the yoke of Assy- 
ria, and withheld the customary tribute. In the sixth year 
of Hezekiah, Shalmanezer, the king of Assyria, had taken 
Samaria and carried away Israel as captives. Now when 
Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib, who had succeeded Sargon 
as king of Assyria, purposed to fight against Jerusalem, he 
made preparations for resistance.^ The fountains were closed, 
the walls were repaired, and a second wall built round the 

1 According to some this Passover took place immediately after the purification 
of the Temple ; according to others it was celebrated after the fall of Samaria,— 
that is, in the sixth year of Hezekiah' s reign. 

2 Instant war Avas averted by the heroic and long-continued resistance of the 
Tyrians under their king Eluloeus. — Josephus, Ant. ix. 14. 



264 KINGS. 

city; weapons were made, and captains set over the men. 
Then he spoke comfortably to his men, saying: Be strong and 
courageous; be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of As- 
syria, nor for all the multitude that is with him; for there are 
more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh ; 
but with us is the Lord our God to help us, and to fight our 
battles. 

At length the dreaded hour came. Sennacherib invaded 
Judah at the head of an immense army, covering the land 
like a vast inundation. One by one the fortified towns — 
" the fenced cities of Judah " — fell into the invader's hand. 
At length, when the Assyrians had reached Lachish,^ Heze- 
kiah's courage and faith failed, and he sent to Sennacherib, 
saying: I have offended; retire from me; that which thou 
puttest on me will 1 bear. Sennacherib consented to with- 
draw his army on payment of "three hundred talents of 
silver, and thirty talents of gold."^ Hezekiah gave him the 
gold and silver of the royal — and Temple — treasures, and to 
raise the full sum he was even compelled to strip the gates 
and pillars of the Temple of the plates of gold with which he 
had overlaid them. 

Nevertheless, the Assyrian king dispatched a large detach- 
ment, under the command of the " Tartan,'' or general, ac- 
companied by two of his highest officials, the chief of his 
court officers (Rab-saris), and the chief of the cup-bearers 
(Rabshakeh), to demand an unconditional surrender. The 
king sent out three of his counsellors, Eliakim, Shebna, and 
JoAH, to speak with the Assyrian officers, whilst the people 
came thronging upon the wall to hear the reply of the enemy. 
The Rabshakeh delivered the message and said: 

Say ye now to Hezekiah: Thus says the great king, the 
king of Assyria: What is this ground of confidence, in which 
thou confidest? Thou sayest (but they are vain words): I 
have counsel and strength for war: now on whom dost thou 
trust, that thou rebellest against me? Lo, thou trustest in 
the support of this broken reed, in Egypt; on which, if a 
man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it; such is 
Pharaoh king of Eg3rpt to all that trust in him. But if thou 
say to me: We trust in the Lord our God: is it not He, 
whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has removed, 
and has commanded Judah and Jerusalem to worship only 
before this altar (in Jerusalem)? Now, make a compact with 
my master the king of Assyria; and I will give thee two 
thousand horses, on condition that thou canst on thy part 
provide riders for them. And have I now come up without 

1 In the plain country of Judah. According to Euscbius it lay seven Roman 
miles south of EleutluM-opolis. 
2Aboutl,ii00,0U0ilolhira. 



KINGS. 265 

the Lord against this land to destroy it? the Lord said to 
me: Go up against this land, and destroy it. 

Then said the ambassadors to Rabshakeh: Speak, we be- 
seech thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language, for we 
understand it ; and speak not to us in the Jewish language, in 
the hearing of the people who are on the wall. But Rabshakeh 
said: Has my lord sent me to thy lord and to thee, to speak 
these words? has he not sent me to the men that sit on the 
wall, who will be reduced with you to the utmost extremities by 
a siege? Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice 
in the Jewish language, and said: Hear ye the words of the 
great king, the king of Assyria. Thus saith the king: Let 
not Hezekiah deceive you; for he shall not be able to deliver 
you. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, say- 
ing: The Lord will surely deliver us: this city shall not be 
dehvered into the hand of the king of Assyria: Hearken 
not to Hezekiah; for thus saith the king of Assyria: Make 
peace with me, and come out to me. And eat ye every one 
of his own vine, and every one of his own fig-tree, and drink 
ye every one the waters of his own cistern ; until I come and 
take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn 
and wine, a land of bread and vineyards. Nor let Hezekiah 
seduce you, sa3rLng: The Lord will deliver us. Have the 
gods of the nations delivered each his own land from the 
hand of the king of Assyria? "Where are the gods of Ha- 
math ^ and of Arphad?^ "Where are the gods of Sepharvaim?' 
Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who are 
they among all the gods of these lands, that have delivered 
their own lands out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver 
Jerusalem out of my hand? But the people held their peace, 
and answered him not a word; for the king's commandment 
was, sa5dng: Answer him not. Then came Eliakim and 
Shebna and Joah, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and 
told him the words of Rabshakeh. 

The Lord will answer thee in the day of trouble ; the name of the God 
of Jacob will defend thee.— Ps. 20, 2. 

Talk no more so exceeding proudly ; let not arrogancy come out of your 
mouth; for the Lord is a God of knowledge, and by Him actions^ are 
weighed. — 1 Sam., 2, 3. 

153. ISAIAH'S PROPHECY. SENNACHERIB'S 
DESTRUCTION. 

(2 Kings, 19. Isa. 37.) 

When king Hezekiah heard it, he rent his clothes; and 

^ The principal city of Upper Syria. 

2 A city or district in Syria. (Xo trace of its existence has yet been discovered.) 

2 Probably Sipphara. the mopt pouthern citv of Mesopotamia. 

12 



266 KINGS. 

covered himself with sackcloth and went into the house of 
the Lord. Then he sent Eliakim, who was over the house- 
hold, and Shebna, the scribe, and the elders of the priests, 
covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of 
Amoz. And they said to him: Thus saith Hezekiah: This 
day is a day of distress, and of rebuke, and of contumely. 
that the Lord thy God would hear the words of Rab- 
shakeh, whom the king of Assyria his lord has sent to re- 
proach the Hving God, and that He would refute the words 
which the Lord thy God has heard ! And do thou offer up 
thy prayer for the poor remains of the people. And Isaiah 
said to them: Thus shall ye say to your lord: Thus saith the 
Lord: Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, 
wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blas- 
phemed Me. Behold, I will infuse a spirit into him and he 
shall hear a rumor, and return to his own land; and I will 
cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. 

But Rabshakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria 
besieging Libnah ; for he had heard that he had decamped 
from Lachish. And when he had received advice concern- 
ing Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, that he was advancing to 
give him battle, he sent again to Hezekiah other messengers, 
with a threatening letter containing much the same boasting 
and insult as before. With this letter Hezekiah went up to 
the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord, and 
prayed fervently to God. Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent 
to Hezekiah, saying: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Thy 
prayer to Me, concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have 
heard. This is the word which the Lord hath spoken con- 
cerning him: He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an 
arrow, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against 
it. By the way that he came, by the same shall he return; 
for I will defend this city, to save it, for Mine own sake, and 
for My servant David's sake. And it came to pass that night, 
that the angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp 
of the Assyrians a hundred fourscore and five thousand. 
So Sennacherib departed, and returned to Nineveh. And it 
came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch,^ 
his god, that Adrammelech and Shareser, his sons, smote him 
with the sword. And Esarhaddon, his son, reigned in his 
stead. 

In those days was Hezekiah sick to death. And the 
prophet Isaiah came to him, and said: Set thy house in order; 
for thou shalt die. Then the king turned his face to the 
wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying: I beseech Thee, O 

» Ninroch hae not been as yet identified with any known Aseyrian deity. 



I 

m 



KINGS. 267 

Lord, remember now how I have walked before Thee in 
truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is 
good in Thy sight. And he wept sore. Now before Isaiah 
had gone out into the middle court, the word of the Lord 
came to him, saying: Turn again, and tell Hezekiah: Thus 
says the Lord: I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy 
tears: behold, I will heal thee; on the third day thou shalt 
go up to the house of the Lord. I will add to thy days fif- 
teen years; I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand 
of the king of Assyria for My own sake, and for My servant 
David's sake. And the prophet laid a plaster of figs on the 
boil, and the king recovered. 

At that time Merodach (Berodach) Baladan, son of 
Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Heze- 
kiah; for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick. And 
Hezekiah hearkened to them, and showed them all his treas- 
ures;^ there was nothing in his house, nor in all his do- 
minion, that Hezekiah showed them not. Then came Isaiah 
the prophet and said to Hezekiah: Hear the word of the 
Lord: Behold, the days come, that all that is in thy house, 
and that which thy fathers have laid up in store to this day, 
shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, says the 
Lord. And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, shall they 
take away; and they shall be employed about the court of 
the king of Babylon. And Hezekiah said to Isaiah: Gracious 
is the word of the Lord, which thou hast delivered ! For, 
added he, there shall be peace, according to His faithful 
promise, in my days. ^ 

We give thanks unto Thee, O God, we give thanks, 

And near is Thy Name : 

Men declare Thy wondrous works. 

For " I will seize the moment, 

I, in uprightness will I judge. 

If the earth and all its inhabitants are dissolving— 

I, even I set up its pillars." 

"I say to the boastful : Boast not ! 

And to the evil-doers : Lift not up the horn ! 

Lift not up on high your horn, 

Speak not impudence with a stiff neck ! " 

For not from the rising and not from the setting, 

And not from the desert of the mountain-heights— 

Nay, God judgeth the cause, 

He putteth down one, and setteth up another. 

For a cup is in the hand of the Lord, 

And it foameth with wine, it is full of mixture ; 

And He poureth out from it, yea the dregs thereof 

Must all the wicked of the earth sip, drink up. 

1 The mention of such rich stores is an argument for supposing these events to 
have happened before Sennacherib's invasion. 



268 KINGS. 

And I, even I will proclaim for ever, 

I will sinp: praises to the God of Jacob ; 

And all the horns of the wicked will I smite down, 

The horns of the righteous shall be exalted. 



154. THE PEOPHET NAHUM. 

Naitum,' a contemporary witli Isaiah, of the city of Elkosh, 
in Galilee, prophesied in the reign of Hezekiah, and not long 
after the subversion of Israel hy Shalmanezer. He fore- 
showed the entire destruction of the Assyrian empire, and 
especially of its metropolis, Nineveh, with which prophecy 
he intermingled consolations for his countrymen, who should 
be delivered from the oppressor, and hear the happy news of 
peace. The fall of Nineveh, when the Medes and Babylon- 
ians drew near, the prophet thus foretells: 

The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not 
at all acquit the wicked: the Lord has His way in the whirl- 
wind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. 
He rebukes the sea, and makes it dry, and dries up all the 
rivers- Bashan languishes, and Carmel, and the flower of Leb- 
anon languishes. The mountains quake at Him, and the hills 
melt, and the earth is burned at His presence, yea, the world, 
and all that dwell therein. The hammer has come up against 
thee, O Assyria! fortify the fortress; watch the way; make 
thy loins strong; stir up thy power mightily. The Lord will 
restore the excellency of Jacob, as the excellency of Israel: 
for the emptiers have emptied them out, and marred their 
vine-branches. The shields of his mighty men are made 
red, the valiant men are in scarlet,^ the chariots like flaming 
torches in the day of their preparation, and the spears terri- 
bly shaken. The chariots rage in the streets, they justle one 
against another in the broad ways: they seem like torches, 
they run like the lightnings. He (the king) recounts his 
worthies: they stumble in their walk; they make haste to the 
wall, the defence is prepared. The gates of the rivers are 
opened, the palace melts with terror. The people flee in all 
directions. All flee away. Stand! stand! but none look 
back. Take ye the spoil of silver, take the spoil of gold ! 
for there is no end of the store of splendid garments, and 
the most costly vessels and furniture. She is empty, and 
void, and waste: and the heart melteth, and the knees smite 
together, and much pain is in all loins, and the faces of them 
all grow pale. Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the 

' D'inj (consolation). 

2 The Assyrians had red shields, and scarlet or purple clothing. 



KINGS. 269 

feeding-place of the young lions, where the lion, the lioness, 
and the lion's whelp walked, and none made them afraid? 
The lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps, and stran- 
gled for his lionesses, and filled his den with prey. 

Thy shepherds slumber, king of Assyria: thy nobles 
dwell in the dust: thy people is scattered upon the moun- 
tams, and no man gathereth them. There is no healing of 
thy bruise; thy wound is grievous: all that hear the bruit of 
thee shall clap the hands over thee: for upon whom hath not 
thy wickedness passed continually? 



155. MANASSEH AND AMON, KINGS OF JUDAH. 

(2 Kings, 21. 2 Chron. 33.) 

Manasseh (698-642) was twelve years old when he began 
to reign. Surrounded by evil counsellors, he turned to do 
evil in the sight of the Lord, reviving the abominable rites 
which Hezekiah had caused to cease. Altars for Baal, and 
groves for Ashtaroth, again abounded in the land, and the 
worship of the host of heaven ^ was carried on even within 
the courts of the Temple. Manasseh's son was made to pass 
through the fire, sacrificed or dedicated to Moloch; familiar 
spirits were sought, divination was restored, a graven image 
placed in the house of the Lord, — -these abominable rites led 
to acts of the deepest depravity, and even to persecution and 
murder.^ 

And the Lord spoke by His servants the prophets, saying: 
Because Manasseh king of Judah, has done these abomina- 
tions, and has done more evil than did the Amorites, who 
were before him, and has made Judah also to sin with his 
idols: therefore, behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jeru- 
salem and Judah, that whosoever hears of it, both his ears 
shall tingle. I will stretch over Jerusalem ^ the line of Sa- 
maria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab: 1 will wipe 
Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it 
upside down. I will deliver the remnant of my inheritance 
into the hand of its enemies; it shall become a prey and a 
spoil to them. 

In the twenty-second year of his reign the Assyrians invaded Judah, 
and were successful. They took Manasseh among the thorns, where he 
had hid himself, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon. 

^ Sabaism, or pure star-worship, without images, became, from the time of 
Manasseh, a favorite form of belief. 

2 Day by day a fresh batch of the prophetic order were ordered for execution.— 
Josephus, Ant., x. 3, §1. According to tradition, Isaiah was among the first to 
perish ; lie was sawn asunder with a wooden saw. 

* I will apply exactly the same measure and rule to Jerusalem as lo Samaria. , 



270 KINGS. 

And wlien he was in affliction, he hesought the Lprd his God, and hum- 
bled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, and prayed to Him, and 
God heard his supijlication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his 
kingdom. God touched the heart of the Assyrian king, and he released 
him. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God. He built the wall 
without the city of David, took away the strange gods, and the idol out 
of the house of the Lord. He could not, however, remedy the effects of 
his own early bad example. 

After a long but disastrous reign of fifty-five years, he 
slept with his fathers, and was buried in the garden of his 
own house. 

Amon (642-639) his son reigned in his stead. He was 
twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 
two years. Also he did that which was evil in the sight of 
the Lord, and served the idols, and worshipped them. And 
the servants of Amon conspired against him, and slew him in 
his own house. But the people of the land slew all them 
that had conspired against king Amon, and made Josiah his 
son king in his stead. 

He will release kings upon the throne, and if they be bound in fetters 
and holden in cords of affliction, He shows them their transgressions. He 
opens their ear to discipline, and commands that they return from ini- 
quity.— Job 36, 7, 8. 

I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because 
of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did 
in Jerusalem. — Jer. 15, 4. 



156. JOSIAH, KING OF JUDAH. THE BOOK OF 
THE LAW IS FOUND. 

(2 Kings, 22. 2 Chron. 34.) 

JosiAH^ (639-608) was eight years old when he began to 
reign, and he reigned thirty-one years. He did that which 
was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways 
of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, 
nor to the left. For in the eighth year of his reign, while 
he was yet young, he began to seek God; and in his twelfth 
year, and six years afterwards, he began to purge the Temple, 
which had been shamefully profaned in the last two idola- 
trous reigns. The house of the Lord was cleansed from every 
trace of idolatry. The vessels made to Baal, Astarte, and the 
host of heaven, and the image of Astarte herself, were ejected 
from the Temple and burnt. The horses dedicated to the sun, 
the altars erected by Ahaz on the flat Temple roof, the high 
places dedicated by Solomon to the false gods of his foreigA 
wives, were successively destroyed. He then undertook an in- 

^•iTT'iyj^"' (whom Jehovah heale). 



KINGS. 271 

spection tour throughout the land, for the purpose of 
purging it from idolatry, and extended this visitation to the 
land of Israel.^ "Wherever he went, he destroyed the images 
of every sort, scattering the ashes on the graves of their 
worshippers. The idolatrous altars were broken down in his 
presence. The high places defiled through the length and 
breadth of his land, from Geha in the extreme north, to 
Beer-sheba at the extreme south of Judah. He burnt the 
bones of the priests ^ upon their altars. And when he had 
done so throughout the land, he returned to Jerusalem. 

The eighteenth year of his reign was signalled by an im- 
portant event, which helped to render the zeal of the king 
still more ardent for the reestablishment of the Mosaic wor- 
ship. Josiah having purged the land and the house, now 
proceeded to repair the latter. To meet the necessary ex- 
penses, money had been collected not merely at the Temple, 
but also by collectors who had visited all parts, both of Judah 
and Israel, in order to obtain contributions. 

When it appeared that a sufficient sum had been raised, 
Josiah sent instructions to Hilkiah, the high priest, by Sha- 
phan, his secretary of state, to pay the sum over to the chief 
architect and the workmen employed. On this occasion Hil- 
kiah declared to Shaphan that he had found "the Book of 
the Law " in the Temple, probably a precious exemplary of 
the Law of Moses, which had been concealed during the 
reign of Manasseh and believed lost. Shaphan brought the 
book in order to show it to the king, and the latter, little 
versed in the Law, read it. On hearing all the prescriptions 
till then so little observed, and the menaces of the heavenly 
chastisement, which would attend transgressors, the king 
was seized with terror, and rent his clothes. He immediately 
ordered Hilkiah, Shaphan and three other persons of the 
court to inquire of the Lord for him and for them that are 
left in Judah and Israel, concerning the words of the book 
that was found. They went to a woman then celebrated for 
having divine inspirations and who was called the prophet- 
ess HuLDA. And she answered them: Tell the man who 
sent you to me : Thus saith the Lord : Behold, I will bring 
evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even 
all the curses that are written in the book which they have 
read before the king of Judah : because they have forsaken 
Me, and have burned incense to other gods, that they might 
provoke Me to anger with all the .works of their hands ; there- 

^ In the depressed state of the Assyrian empire, the king: of Judah recovered 
power in those districts, probably acting as Viceroy of the nibnarch of Assyria. 

2 The priests whose bones were burnt had been probably first seized and put to 
death. 



272 KINGS. 

fore My wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall 
not be quenched. But to the king of Judah, who sent you 
to inquire of the Lord, thus shall ye say to him: Thus says 
the Lord God of Israel, as touching the words which thou 
hast heard: Because thy heart was tender, and thou hast 
humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I 
spoke against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, 
I also have heard thee, says the Lord. Behold therefore, I 
will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered 
into thy grave in peace; and thy eyes shall not see all the 
evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought 
the king word again. 

His CJosiah's) remembrance like the composition of the perfume that is 
made by the art of the apothecary, sweet as honey in all mouths, and as 
music at a banquet of wine. — Eccles., 49, 1. 



157. JOSIAH RENEWS THE COVENANT. HIS 
DEATH. 

(2 Kings, 23. 2 Chron. 35.) 

Then Josiah sent and gathered all the elders of the people, 
with the priests and prophets, and went up to the Temple, 
and the king elevated above the crowd on the scafCold or 
<^ pillar," which was the monarch's special place in the Tem- 
ple courts (page 202), recited the sacred document from end 
to end. The heart of the people bowed before the majesty 
of the Divine Law, and they without hesitation renewed the 
covenant with the God of their fathers, and promised to walk 
after the Lord, to keep His commandments, His testimonies 
and His statutes with all their heart, and all their soul, to per- 
form the words of this covenant that were written in this 
book. 

Then the king ordered the celebration of the Passover 
Feast according to the prescriptions of the Law. An im- 
mense concourse assembled in Jerusalem, and the celebra- 
tion of this long-intermitted feast was on a scale of most 
unusual grandeur and magnificence. Such a Passover, at- 
tended by such multitudes, and observed with such accuracy 
of ritual, had not been held since the days of Samuel, the 
last judge. 

The piety and energy of Josiah should perhaps have suf- 
ficed to re-establish the religious unity in a lasting manner, 
and strongly to constitute the state upon the basis of the 
Mosaic law, but the events of Asia, in which Judea also was 
dragged, hastened the ruin of the kingdom, which was 
already enfeebled by so many checks. 



KINGS. 273 

Pharaoli Neco king of Egypt, went up against the king 
of Assyria to the river Euphrates. His object was to 
reach Carchemish on the river Euphrates. To do this it 
was essential that he should pass through the territory 
of Judah. In spite of the assurance of the Egyptian king 
that he had no hostile designs against Judah, Josiah opposed 
the passage of Neco's army. The two forces encountered 
on the great battle-field of Esdraelon, not far from Megiddo. 
Josiah, like Ahab, entered the battle in his chariot in dis- 
guise. But, like Ahab, a chance arrow inflicted on him a 
mortal wound. His servants conveyed him to Jerusalem, 
which, however, he did not reach alive. The death of this 
pious king spread sorrow and consternation everywhere. 
He was buried in his own sepulchre. And the people of the 
land took Joahaz, the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and 
made him king in his father's stead. 

Lord, I love the habitation of Thy house, and the place where Thy 
honor dwells.— Ps. 26, 8. 

This is the covenant which I make with them, says the Lord : My 
spirit which is upon thee, and my words, which I have put in thy mouth. 
They shall not depart from thy mouth, nor from the mouth of thy seed, 
nor from the mouth of thy seed's seed, from this time forth for ever. — Isa. 
59, 21. 

To the upright, there arises light in the darkness. — ^Ps., 112, 4. 



158. THE PROPHETS ZEPHANIAH AND 
HABAKKUK. 

Zephaniah,! of whom we know nothing save his genealogy and his 
function, prophesied in the days of Josiah, and probably in those earlier 
years of his reign during which he reformed the religious and moral 
abuses of his people. Zephaniah's prophecies help us to comprehend the 
greatness and difficulty of the task to which king Josiah devoted himself, 
the varied and obstinate baseness of the men whom he had to reform, to 
recover to patriotism, virtue, and religion. As Zephaniah contemplated 
these corruptions, he felt that a day of the Lord must come, a great and 
terrible day. And as God is the God of the whole earth, and as other 
nations are no less corrupt than his, the prophet affirms that the Divine 
judgment will sweep through the whole earth. He, therefore, exhorts to 
repentance, and promises deliverance to such as turn to God : 

Sweeping, I will sweep everything from the face of the earth, says the 
Lord : I will sweep away man and beast ; I will sweep away the fowl of 
the heaven, and the fish of the sea, and their offences with the sinners : 
and I will cut off man from the face of the earth, saith the Lord. I will 
also stretch forth My hand over Judah and over all the inhabitants of 
Jerusalem ; and I will cut off' from this place the very remnant of Baal, 
the name of the Chemarim ^ with the priests ; and them that worship the 
host of heaven upon the house-tops ; and them that worship and swear by 

* n''J3y (Watcher of the Lord). 

' Chemarim (those who go about in black) priests of idol worship. 



274 KINGS. 

the Lord, and by Malcham ; i and them that are turned back from the 
Lord ; and those that have not sought the Lord, nor inquired for Him. 
Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God : for the day of the Lord 
is at hand : for the Lord has prepared a sacrifice, He hath bid His guests.'-^ 
And it shall come to pass in the day of the Lord's sacrifice, that I will 
punish the princes, and the king's children, and all such as are clothed 
with strange apparel. On the same day also will I punish all those that 
leap on the threshold,^ which fill their masters* houses with violence and 
deceit. They become a booty, and their houses a desolation : they shall 
also build houses, but not inhabit them ; and they shall plant vineyards, 
but not drink the wine thereof The great day of the Lord is near, it is 
near, and hastens greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord : the 
mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day 
of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of dark- 
ness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the trum- 
pet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high towers. 
And I Avill bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, 
because they have sinned against the Lord : and their blood shall be 
poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung. Neither their silver nor 
their gold shall be able to deliver them on the day of the Lord's wrath ; 
but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy : for He 
shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land. 

The Doom on Assyria: 

And He will stretch His hand over the north, and destroy Assyria ; He 
will also make Nineveh a barren waste, an arid waste like the desert. 
And flocks shall lie down in the midst of her, wild beasts of every kind 
in droves; pelicans and hedgehogs lodge on their capitals; birds sing 
from the windows ; rubbish-heaps lie on the thresholds, for the cedar-work 
is laid bare. This is the city, the exulting city, which said in her heart, 
I, and no other! how has she become a desolation, a lair of wild beasts! 
every one that passeth by her shall hiss and SAving his hand. 

The final appeal to Jerusalem: 

Woe to the rebellious and polluted city, the oppressing city ! She 
obeyed not the voice ; she received not correction ; she trusted not in the 
Lord ; she drew not near to her God. Her princes within her are roaring 
lions ; her judges are ravening Avolves, Avho leave no bones for the morn- 
ing. Her prophets are boasters, traitors ; her priests profane that Avhich 
is sacred, and violate the law. The just Lord is in the midst of her ; He 
docs no wrong : every morning doth he bring His judgment to light, he 
faileth not ; but the unjust knoweth no shame. I have cut off the 
nations : their towers are desolate ; I made their streets Avaste, that none 
passeth by : their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, that there 
IS no inhabitant. I said : " Only fear thou Me, accept correction," 
that their habitation might not be cut off, according to all that I had 
appointed concerning them. But they rose early, and corrupted all their 
doings. Therefore, wait ye upon Me, saith the Lord, until the day that 
I rise up to the prey : for My determination is to gather the nations, that 
I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them My indignation, even 
all My fierce anger : for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of 
My jealousy. 

Habakkuk* prophesied probably at the same time, and Avas therefore 

^ Malcham or kinj;, was Baal. 

2 The sinners are to be the sacrifice, and the nations whom God has set apart to 
destroy the people are the guests. 

3 Violently rushing out of their OAvn stronghold and live by pillage and extor- 
tion. 

* P-lp^n the Embracer. 



KINGS. 275 

contemporary Avith Zephaniah. He predicts the terrible judgments which 
threatened his country from the Chaldeans, whom he calls a " bitter and 
hasty nation," and whose ferocious character and unsparing cruelty he 
describes with all the force and grandeur of oriental imagery. The 
Chaldeans are threatened in their turn ; and the book closes with a mag- 
nificent description of the majesty of God. 

The judgment on Judah: 

How long shall I cry, Lord, and Thou hearest not ! I cry to Thee, 
Violence ! and Thou savest not. Why dost Thou let me see iniquity, and 
why behold est Thou misery ? 

The Lord's answer is: 

Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvellously : 
for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it 
be told you. For lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty 
nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess 
the dAvelling-places that are not theirs. They are terrible and dreadful : 
their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. Their 
horses are swifter than panthers, and fiercer than the evening wolves ; 
their horsemen spread themselves, coming from afar; they fly hither, 
hastening, like an eagle, to devour. They come all for violence : their 
faces sup up as the east wind, they sweep up captives as sand. They 
scoff at the kings, and the princes are a scorn to them; they deride every 
stronghold; they heap dust,i and take it. 

But the prophet cannot contemplate the approaching doom 
of his race unmoved: 

Art Thou not from everlasting, O Lord, my God, my Holy One 1 We 
shall not die. O Lord, Thou hast ordained them for judgment ; and, O 
mighty God, Thou hast established them for correction.^ Thou art of 
purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity ! Where- 
fore then lookest Thou on them that deal treacherously,^ and holdest Thy 
tongue when the wicked devoureth one more righteous than himself? 
And makest men as the fish of the sea, as the creeping things, that 
have no ruler over them'?* He lifteth them all up with his hook, he 
draAveth them into his net, and gathereth them into his draw-net ; he 
rejoiceth thereat, and is glad. Therefore he sacrifices to his net, and burns 
incense to his drag ; because by them his portion is fat, and his meat 
plenteous. Shall he therefore empty his net, and not spare continually to 
slay the nations ? 

The doom of Babylon: 

I will stand upon my watch-tower, and station myself on the fortress, 
and will watch to see what He will say in me, and what I shall answer to my 
plea. Then the Lord answered me, and said : Write the vision, and 
make it plain on the tablets, that he may run who readeth it. For the 
vision is yet for the appointed end, and vStriveth towards the goal, and 
doth not lie ; though it tarry, wait for it ; because it will surely come, it 
will not stop short. Lo, he who is elated, not tranquil is his soul within 
him, but the righteous liveth in his confidence in God. Like a man trans- 
gressing by wine, the proud man resteth not,^ neither keepeth at home ; 
he enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, 
but gathereth to him all nations, and heapeth to him all people. Shall 

1 That is : mounds. 2 j^ot for destruction. 

5 The Chaldeans. < Are men reduced to the level of fish? - 

» The Babylonians were much addicted to wine. Intoxicated by his successes, 
his self-confidence does not know any limits. 



276 KINGS. 

not all these take up a parable against him, and a taimting proverb 
against him, and say : Woe to him who increaseth that Avhich is not his ! 
how long ? and to him that loadeth himself with many pledges ! Shall 
they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex 
thee, and thou shalt be for booties to them ? Because thou hast spoiled 
many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of 
men's blood, and violence done to the land, to the city, and to all the 
inhabitants thereof. Woe to him who procureth wicked gain for his 
house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from 
the power of evil ! Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting 
off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul. For the stone shall 
cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it. Woe 
to him who buildeth a tOAvn Avith blood, and establisheth a city by in- 
iquity !i Woe to him who giveth his neighbor drink, to thee who puttest 
thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look 
on their nakedness S Thou art filled with shame for glory ; drink thou 
also, and let thy nakedness be uncovered : the cup of the Lord's right 
hand shall be turned to thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory. 
What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it ; 
the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work 
trusteth therein, to make dumb idols. Woe to him who saith to the 
wood: Awake! to the dumb stone: Arise! Behold, it is laid over 
with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it. 
But the Lord is in His holy temple : let all the earth keep silence before 
Him. 

The prophet is strong in his conviction of the redeeming 
"end" of judgment: 

I heard, and trembling seized my breast ; my lips quivered at the 
sound : rottenness entered into my bones ; I trembled under myself, that 
I am silently to await the day of trouble, when he that shall attack me 
cometh up. For though the fig-tree will not blossom, and there be no 
yield on the vines ; the labor of the olive fails, and the fields bear no food, 
the fold is empty of the flock, and. there is no ox in the stall : Yet I will 
rejoice in the Lord, I Avill be joyful in the God of my salvation. The 
Lord God is my strength, and He maketh my feet like hinds' feet, and He 
maketh me to walk in my high places. 



159. THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. JEHOAHAS 
AND JEHOIAKIM, KINGS OF JUDAH. 

(2 Kings, 23. 2 Chron. 36.) 

Jehoahas (Sallum) was twenty-three years old when he 
began to reign. The people^ had placed him, Josiah's younger 
son, upon the throne; but he was speedily (in three months) 
removed from it by Phaeaoh-Neco, king of Egypt, then by 
his victory over Josiah in military possession of the king- 
dom. Neco loaded him with chains, set a penalty of one 
hundred talents of silver and one talent of gold upon the 

' The costly bnildmfi:? of Babylon had been erected by the spoils of conquered 
nations and by the ©Sod of multitudes. 

" The party who hetd Josiah's and Jeremiah's views. Eliakim, the elder son of 
Josiah, was opposed to his fathej-'s policy. 



KINGS, 277 

land, and made Eliakim (609-598), the elder son of Josiah, 
king, turning Ms name to Jehoiakim. Jehoahas was carried 
away captive to Egypt and died there. Jehoiakim was 
twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 
eleven years. He did that which was evil in the sight of the 
Lord.^ He is reproached by the prophet Jeremiah with 
covetousness, injustice, luxury, thirst for blood, and selfish 
extravagance. 

Jeremiah,^ the son of Hilkiah, was a priest, and a native of Anathoth, 
a small place not far from Jerusalem. When called by the Divine Spirit 
very early to the prophetical office he begged to be excused : Ah, Lord 
God ! said he, behold, I cannot speak ; for I am young. But the Lord 
said to him : Say not, I am young ; for thou shalt go wherever I shall 
send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Be not 
afraid of their faces ; for I am with thee, to deliver thee, saith the Lord. 
His prophecies commenced about the 13th year jof the reign of Josiah and 
continued through the Avicked and turbulent reigns of Jehoahaz, Jehoia- 
kim, Jeconiah, and Zedekiah. During a period of forty-two years he de- 
nounced the judgments of God against the people, warned them, and 
urged them to repent. He was, as he himself says, " rising early and 
speaking," and protesting, and as the result of this there came reproach 
and derision daily. He was mocked, betrayed, persecuted by his own 
kindred, so that he exclaimed : " I said : I will not speak any more in 
His name, but His word was in my heart as a burning fire, shut up in my 
bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay." 

When, at a festival in the Temple, soon after the accession of Jehoia- 
kim, Jeremiah had predicted that the Temple would be made like Shiloh^ 
and Jerusalem would become a curse to all the nations of the earth, he 
was seized by the priests, the prophets and all the people, and all joined 
in the demand for his death. But Jeremiah said : The Lord sent me to 
prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye 
have heard. Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and 
obey the voice of the Lord your God; and the Lord will repent of 
the evil that He has pronounced against you. As for me, behold, I am 
in your hand ; do with me as seems good and meet to you : but know ye 
for certain, that if you put me to death, you shall surely bring innocent 
blood upon youi'selves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants 
thereof; for of a truth the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these 
words in your ears. Then said the princes and all the people to the 
priests and to the prophets : This man is not worthy to die ; lor he has 
spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God. lias not Micah the 
Morashite, in the days of Hezekiah, uttered a like prophecy with impunity'? 
By putting him to death we might procure great evil against our souls. 
Thus for a time Jeremiah escaped. 

Different, however, was the fate of Uriah, the son of Samaja, who 
prophesied against the land, and fled for his life into Egypt. He was 
fetched forth out of there to Jehoiakim, who slew him with the sword and 
cast his dead body into the^ graves of the common people. Jeremiah would 
have been served by the wicked Jehoiakim in the same manner, but for the 
protection of some courtiers, especially of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan. 

^ Josephus says that Jehoiakim was an unjust man and an evil doer. Ezekiel 
describes him as oppressive and cruel. 
^^TT'Dl^ whom Jehovah sets up. 

3 A city in Ephraim, where the tabernacle was set up. For the idolatry of Israel 
this once favored city was forsaken and brought to ruin. 



278 KINGS. 



160. THE KING OF BABYLON THREATENS 
JUDAH. PROPHECY OF JEREMIAH. 

(2 Kings, 24. Jerem. 46 and 26.) 

It was not for long that Jehoiakim was tributary to Pha- 
raoh. For in the fourth year of Jehoiakim's reign, Nebu- 
chadnezzar, the son of the king of Babylon, defeated the 
Egyptian king at Carchemish,^ and deprived him of all his 
Syrian possessions. This fall of Egypt caused joy in Jeru- 
salem. 

The prophet Jeremiah, however, understood forthwith that 
Nebuchadnezzar was the Lord's instrument — or, as he calls 
him, ^^ the Lord' s servant^''^ Jer. 25, 9 — to execute a commission 
of punishment upon Judaji and many other nations for their 
sins. Thus we read in the prophecy of Jeremiah: 

The word of the Lord Avhich came to Jeremiah the prophet against the 
Gentiles, against Egypt, against the army of Pharaoh Neco, king of 
Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates, in Carchemish, which Nebu- 
chadnezzar, king of Babylon, smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the 
son of Josiah, king of Judah. Order ye the buckler and shield, and draw 
near to battle. Harness the horses ; and get up, ye horsemen, and stand 
forth with your helmets ; furbish the spears, and put on the brigandines. 
Wherefore have I seen them dismayed and turned away back 1 and their 
mighty ones are beaten down, and have fled apace, and look not back : for 
fear was round about, saith the Lord. Let not the swift flee away nor the 
mighty man escape ; they shall stumble, and fall toward the north by the 
river Euphrates. 

Who is this that coraeth up as a flood, whose waters are moved as the 
rivers 1^ Egypt riseth up like a flood, and its waters are moved like the 
rivers ; and the Egyptian saith : I will go up, and will cover the earth ; I 
will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof. Come up, ye horses ; 
and rage, ye chariots ; and let the mighty men come forth ; the Ethiopians 
and the Libyans,^ that handle the shield; and the Lydians, that handle 
and bend the bow. For this is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day of 
vengeance, that He may avenge Him of His adversaries : and the sword 
shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood : for 
the Lord God of hosts hath a sacrifice in the north country by the river 
Euphrates. Go up into Gilead, and take balm, virgin, the daughter of 
Egypt : in vain shalt thou use many medicines ; for thou shalt not be 
cured. The nations have heard of thy shame, and thy cx\ hath filled the 
land : for the mighty man hath stumbled against the mighty, and they 
are fallen both together. 

Now when after the victory over the Egyptians, the Chal- 
deans advanced to face about Judah, a great consternation 
came over the people ; many inhabitants of the neighborhood 
of Jerusalem fled into the capital; and in the fifth year of 
Jehoiakim a day of fasting was appointed, to implore the 

lA city on the Euphrates. According to Rawliuson, close to Hierapolis?, or 
Mabiig. 
3 A beautiful allusion to the overflowing of the Nile, which made Egypt fruitful. 
3 Inhabitants of Afl-ica, the neighbors and allies of Egypt. 



KINGS. 279 

help of God against the Chaldeans. Jeremiah, not venturing 
to come forth publicly, commanded his secretary, Baruch, 
the son of Nerijah, to read a roll which contained exhorta- 
tions to the people, and which he had caused him to write 
down, in order to present their supplications before the Lord, 
and to avert every one from his evil way: ''for great is the 
anger and the fury that the Lord has pronounced against 
this people." And Baruch did according to all that Jeremiah, 
the prophet, commanded him; he took the book up to the 
Temple, and read it, where all the people could hear. 

"From the thirteenth year of Josiah (thus it is said in the writing: read 
by Baruch) even to this day, that is, the three and twentieth year, the 
word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you, rising early 
and speaking ; but ye have not hearkened. When He said : Turn yc 
again now every one from his evil way ; go not after other gods ; and I 
will do you no hurt, yet you have not hearkened to Me. Therefore, be- 
hold, I Avill send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord, 
and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My sen-ant, and will bring them 
against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all 
these nations round about, and will utterly destroy them, and make theni 
an astonishment, and a hissing, and perpetual desolations. IMoreover, I 
will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the 
voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the mill- 
stones, and the light of the candle. This Avhole land shall be a desolation, 
and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon 
seventy years. And when seventy years are accomplished, I Avill punish 
the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the Lord, for their iniquity, 
and will make it perpetual desolations. For many nations and great 
kings shall make them servants also ; and I will recompense them ac- 
cording to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands." 

When the princes had heard all these words, they were 
afraid, and said to Baruch: We must surely tell the king all 
these words. Go, hide thyself, thou and Jeremiah ; and let 
no man know where you are. And they went in to the king, 
and told him all the words; and he sent his servant to bring 
the roll. It was brought and read before the king, and 
before all the princes who stood beside him. Now the king 
sat in the winter-house in the ninth month, and there was a 
fire on the hearth burning before him. And when only a 
small part of it had been read, the king cut it in angry con- 
tempt into pieces, and cast it into the fire, until all the roll 
was consumed. Then the king commanded to arrest Baruch 
the scribe, and Jeremiah the prophet, but the Lord hid 
them. 

Nebuchadnezzar now invaded Judea, and, having laid siege 
to Jerusalem, made himself master of it in the ninth month, 
called KisJev (November), on the 18th day of the month, and 
having then taken Jehoiakim prisoner, he put him in chains, 
to carry him to Babylon. But he having humbled himself 
to Nebuchadnezzar, and submitted to become his tributary, 



280 KINGS. 

was again restored to tis kingdom. But, before Nebu- 
chadnezzar removed from Jerusalem, he had caused great 
numbers of the people to be sent captive to Babylon. At the 
same time also, he carried away a great part of the vessels 
of the house of the Lord to put them in the house of Bel, 
his god, at Babylon. Therefore, from hence must be reck- 
oned the seventy years of the Babylonish captivity foretold 
by the prophet Jeremiah. 

Jehoiakim, after he had served the king of Babylon three 
years, rebelled against him, hoping perhaps, as Nebuchad- 
nezzar was engaged in distant wars, to attain to independ- 
ence. 

The king of Babylon not being at once able to chastise 
him, sent orders to all his lieutenants and governors in those 
parts to make war upon him; thus various bands of Chal- 
deans, Syrians, Moabites, and others plundered his land; till 
at last Nebuchadnezzar advanced himself with a regular 
army upon Jerusalem. But before it reached the city, 
whether by a conspiracy or sudden violence, Jehoiakim fell; 
and so hated was he, that his body was refused burial, and 
cast out upon the open ground around the city, to be a prey 
to dogs and birds. 

The fear of a king is as the roaring of a lion ; whoso provokes him to 
anger sins against his own soul. — Prov. 20, 2. 

Trust ye no more in man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for of what 
account is he to be made. — Isa. 2, 22. 

161. JEHOIACHIN CARRIED CAPTIVE TO 
BABYLON. 

(2 Kings, 24. Jerm. 22, 24.) 

Jehoiachin, or Jeconiah,^ succeeded his father. He was 
eighteen '-^ years old when he began to reign. 

At that time the lieutenants and governors of the provinces 
that were under Nebuchadnezzar's subjection in those parts, 
came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. After 
three months Nebuchadnezzar himself came thither with his 
army, and when Jehoiachin saw that he was unable to defend 
himself, he went out to him, with his mother, his servants, 
his princes, arid officers, and delivered himself into his 
hands. 

Nebuchadnezzar now plundered the Temple and carried 
out thence all its treasures, and the treasures of the king's 
house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon 
had made in the Temple of the Lord. And he put in chains 

• > 1 Chron. 3, 16; or in short Coniah.— Jerein. 22, 24. 

' According to 2 Chron. 36, 9, eight yeare, which ie probably the error ol a copy- 
XBt.— Comp. Jerem. 22, 28. 



KINGS. 281 

Jehoiachin and carried him away to Babylon, and with him 
the king's mother, his wives, all the princes, nobles, and 
artificers, — 10,000 captives. And thus was fulfilled the word 
of the Lord, foretold by Jeremiah: 

As I live, saith the Lord, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim kino: of 
Judah Avere the signet upon My right hand, yet would I pluck thee theiu-e ; 
and I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the 
hand of them whose face thou fearest, even into the hand of Nebuchad- 
nezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans. And I will 
cast thee out, and thy mother that bore thee, into another country, where ye 
were not born ; and there shall ye die. But to the land whereunto they desire 
to return, thither shall they not return. Is this man Coniah a despised 
broken idol 1 is he a vessel Avherein is no pleasure "? wherefore are they cast 
out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not ? O 
earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord : Write ye this 
man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days : for no man of 
his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any 
more in Judah. 

Among the captives was also Ezekiel, the son of Buzi, 
who was at that time twenty-five years old, and who in later 
times, as a prophet of God, pronounced the Lord's word to 
the exiles at the river of Cliebar in Babylonia, Jehoiachin 
was kept a captive for thirty-seven years through the reign 
of Nebuchadnezzar, but, on Evil-merodach's accession to the 
Chaldean throne, he was brought out of prison, placed at the 
head of the subdued kings in Babylon, with appointments 
and allowances befitting his rank. 

Por I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the 
fathers upon the children to the^ third and fourth generations of them that 
liate Me. — 2 Mos. 20, 5. 

] 62. ZEDEKIAH, KING OF JUDAH. JEREMIAH'S 

EXHORTATION TO YIELD TO THE 

AUTHORITY OF BABYLON. 

(2 Kings, 24, 17-20. Jeremiah, 27-29.) 

The king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin's father's 
brother, king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah 
(598-588). Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began 
to reign, and his reign of eleven years was evil and unfortunate. 
Although he bound himself to subjection by a solemn oath in 
the name of God, he, nevertheless, did not bear patiently the 
yoke of the king of Babylon, and stimulated by false proph- 
ets and evil advisers, tried to shake it off. But the prophet 
Jeremiah exhorted him against any revolt, saying : 

Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve 
him and his people, and live. Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by 
the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence '^ Hearken not to the 
words of the prophets who say : Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon ; 
for they prophesy a lie to you. I have not sent them, says the Lord. If 



282 KINGS. 

they be prophets, and if the word of the Lord be with them, let them iioav 
make intercession to the Lord of hosts, that the vessels which are left 
in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at 
Jerusalem, go not to Babylon. For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God 
of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the Lord, 
and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem : They shall be 
carried to Babylon, and there shall they be until the day that I visit them, 
saith the Lord ; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place. 
And it came to pass, that a certain prophet, Haxaniah of Gibeon, de- 
luded the people by false hopes, saying : Thus speaks the Lord of hosts : 
Witliin two full years will I bring again into this place all the vessels of 
the Lord's house, and Jeconiah the Idng, with all the captives : for I Avill 
break the yoke of the king of Babylon. Then the prophet Jeremiah said 
to him in the presence of all the people : Amen ! the Lord do so, and 
perform thy Avords ! Nevertheless, heajr thou now this word that I speak 
in thy ears^ and in the ears of all the people : The prophet who prophe- 
sies peace, Avhen his word shall come to pass, then he shall be known, 
that the Lord has truly sent him. Then Hananiah took the yoke from 
oif the prophet Jeremiah's neck, broke it, and said: Thus says the Lord : 
Even so will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from 
the neck of all nations within the space of two full years. And the 
prophet Jeremiah went his way. Then the word of the Lord came to 
Jeremiah. Go and tell Hananiah, saying : Thus says the Lord : Thou 
hast broken the yokes of wood ; but thou shalt make for them yokes of 
iron. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel : I have put a 
yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they may serve 
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. Hear noAV, Hananiah ; the Lord hath 
not sent thee, but thou makest this people to trust in a lie. Therefore, 
thus says the Lord: Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the 
earth ; this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against 
the Lord. So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh 
month. 

In like manner the prophet Jeremiah exhorted the captives 
in Babylon not to aggravate their yoke by indulging in false 
hopes of prompt deliverance. "When one day Zedekiah sent a 
legation to Babylon, Jeremiah charged them with a letter, 
which the legates were ordered by him to read publicly, and 
in which there was said: 

Build ye houses, and dwell in them ; and plant gardens, and eat the 
fruit of them ; and seek the peace of the city whither the Lord has caused 
you to be carried away captives, and pray to the l^ord for it ; for in the 
peace thereof shall ye have peace. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the 
God of Israel : Let not your prophets and your diviners, who are in the midst 
of you, deceive you ; for they prophesy falsely to you in My name : I liave 
not sent them. For thus says the Lord : After seventy years be accom- 
plished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform My good word toward 
you, in causing you to return to this place. 

In the fourth year of Zedekiah's reign, ambassadors were 
assembled in Jerusalem from most of the neighboring na- 
tions, from Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon, with 
the purpose of soliciting Zedekiah to join in a confederacy 
against the Chaldeans. Jeremiah, however, uttered the most 
austere warnings before the people at large and tlie foreign 
ambassadors against any resistance whatever. He sent a 



KINGS. 283 

yoke to every one of the ambassadors, intimating by tliis 
sign that God had decreed their subjection to the Babylonian 
empire, and that it was their wisdom to submit. The prophet 
addressed similar admonitions to Zedekiah, which seem to 
have made some impression upon him; for he journeyed to 
Babylon in the same year, evidently with the purpose of re- 
pelling the suspicions disseminated against him, and assuring 
the king of his loyalty. 

If a man vow a vow to the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his sonl with 
a bond, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that 
proceeds out of his mouth. — 4 Mos. 30, 2. 

163. THE PROPHET EZEKIEL. 

It was about the same time that Ezekiel,! the son of Buzi, a prophet 
of the priestly order, who had been carried away captive to Babylon with 
Jehoiachin, was seized with the prophetic spirit. In the thirtieth year of 
his age, Avalking there by the river Chebar, in deep meditation, probably, 
upon the destinies of his country, " the hand of Jehovah " rested upon 
him, and the Lord appeared to him on a throne supported by chenibim 
and wheels ; and He directed him to go and declare the Divine Will to his 
exiled countrymen, and to exhort them to bow submissively under the 
hand of God, and to yield quietly to the Babylonian government. Son 
of man! — thus was the Lord's word to him — I send thee to the children of 
Israel, to a rebellious nation ; they are impudent in their countenance and 
hardened in their hearts. Whether they will hear, or whether they will 
forbear, yet shall they know that there has been a prophet among them. 
And thou, son of man ! be not afraid of them, though briars and thorns 
be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions, be not afraid of their 
words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. , 
But thou, son of man ! open thy mouth, and eat what I give thee. And 
when I looked, says Ezekiel, behold, a hand was sent tome; and lo, a 
roll of a book was therein ; and He spread it before me ; and it was writ- 
ten within and without ; and there were Avritten therein lamentations, and 
warning, and woe. Moreover, He said to me : Son of man ! eat what 
thou findest, eat this roll, and go speak to the house of Israel. Then did 
1 eat it ; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. Then the spirit 
took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, sayiug : 
Blessed be the Glory of the Lord from His place! 

The emblem of a siege. — Ez. 4. 

Thou also, son of man L take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and 
portray upon it the city, even Jerusalem; and lay siege against it, and 
build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also 
against it, and set battering rams against it round about. Moreover take 
an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron betAveen thee and the city : and 
set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege 
against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel. 

Type of the captivity both of king and people. — Ez. 12. 

In the sixth year of the captivity the word of the Lord came to Eze- 
kiel, saying : Son of man ! prepare stuff for removing, and remove by day 
in their sight. Dig through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby. 
In their sight bear it upon thy shoulders, and carry it forth in the tWi- 

1 *7Np.Tn' the strength of God. 



284 KINGS. 

light ; thou shalt cover thy face, that thou see not the ground : for I have 
set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel. And in the morning came 
the word of the Lord unto me, saying : Son of man ! hath not the house of 
Israel, the rebellious house, said unto thee: What doest thou 1 Say thou 
unto them : Thus says the Lord God : This burden concerns the prince in 
Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel that are among them. Say : 1 am 
your sign: As I have done, so shall it be done unto them; they shall 
remove and go into captivity. And the prince that is among them shall 
bear upon his shoulder in the twilight, and shall go forth : they shall dig 
through the wall to carry out thereby ; he shall cover his face, that he see 
not the ground with his eyes. My net also will I spread upon him, and 
he shall be taken in my snare : and I will bring him to Babylon to the 
land of the Chaldeans, yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there. 
And I will scatter toward every wind all that are about him to help him, 
and all his bands ; and I will draw out the sword after them. And they 
shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall scatter them among the na- 
tions, and disperse them in the countries. 

The destruction of Jerusalem shown by the figure of a 
boiling pot. — Bz. 24. 

Again in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the 
month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying : Son of man ! write thee 
the name of the day, even of this same day : the king of Babylon set him- 
self against Jerusalem this same day. And utter a parable to the rebel- 
lious house, and say to them : Thus says the Lord God : Set on a pot, set 
it on, and also pour water into it. Gather into it every good piece, the 
thigh, and the shoulder; fill it with the choice bones. Therefore thus 
says the Lord God : Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose scum is 
therein, and whose scum is not gone out of it ! Woe to the bloody city ! 
I will even make the pile for fire great. Heap on wood, kindle the fire, 
that the scum of it may be consumed. 

Thus the Lord unceasingly directed the attention of those 
in Jerusalem through Jeremiah, and of those in captivity 
through Ezekiel to the approaching sad catastrophe, and now 
the day of the dreadful judgments of God came. 



164. ZEDEKIAH REBELS AGAINST NEBUCHAD- 
NEZZAR. JERUSALEM IS TAKEN. 

(2 Kings, 25, 1-7. Jeremiah, 27. 34. 51. 52.) 

In the ninth year of his reign Zedekiah, contrary to solemn 
treaty with Nebuchadnezzar, entered into a league with 
Pharaoh-Neco of Egypt, openly declared a revolt against 
the Chaldeans, and refused longer to pay the tribute to the 
king of Babylon. Hence arose a third invasion by the Chal- 
deans. On the tenth day of the tenth month of the same 
year (n:]D:3 nil^i' ), Nebuchadnezzar and all his host came 
against Jerusalem, pitched against it, and built forts against 
it round about. The king of Egypt did not advance to the 
assistance of Zedekiah till Jerusalem was besieged. 

Now Zedekiah caused Jeremiah to be inquired of as to the 
issue of this siege ; the prophet predicted the taking of the 
city by the Chaldeans. Nevertheless Zedekiah did not de- 



KINGS, 285 

spond, and resolved to continue the defense courageously. 
He proclaimed freedom to all Hebrew slaves, in order thereby 
to strengthen his troops. There T\^ere also new hopes derived 
from the tidings that Pharaoh-Hophra, who had just suc- 
ceeded to the throne of Egypt, led the forces which his 
father had collected to the relief of Zedekiah. Upon the 
capture of Gaza by the Egyptians, Nebuchadnezzar sus- 
pended the siege of Jerusalem and marched against Pharaoh. 
He joined battle with him, defeated him, and drove him out 
of all Syria. As soon as the king of Babylon had departed 
from Jerusalem, the false prophets deceived Zedekiah, and 
said that the king of Babylon would not make any more war 
against him, and that even those then in captivity would 
soon return. The use which the wretched princes and 
wealthy men made of the respite thus granted them was to 
force all those unhappy persons, whom lately they had set 
free, to return to slavery, breaking thus their solemn cove- 
nant. Jeremiah desponding, now resolved to go to his na- 
tive city, Anathoth. But at the gate one of the rulers seized, 
and falsely accused him of being a deserter to the Babylon- 
ians. Jeremiah in consequence of this accusation had to 
endure all sorts of cruelties and was thrown into prison. 

The Babylonian forces returned and lay before Jerusalem 
eighteen months, and besieged it with the utmost vigor. At 
the same time two of the greatest calamities fell upon the in- 
habitants of the hard pressed city, famine and pestilential 
distemper, and made great havoc among the people. Jere- 
miah, though in prison, did not rest, but proclaimed aloud, 
and exhorted the multitude to open the gates and admit the 
king of Babylon ; for by doing so they would be preserved, 
otherwise destroyed. But the rulers came to the king, ac- 
cused Jeremiah, and complained of him, as of a mad man, 
and one who disheartened the people. The king having 
given them permission to do with the prophet whatever they 
wished, they presently came into the prison, seized Jeremiah 
and let him down with a cord into a pit full of mire that he 
might die there by suffocation. But there was one of the 
king's servants, an Ethiopian by descent, who told the king 
what a state the prophet was in. The king repented of hav- 
ing delivered up the prophet to the rulers, and bade the Ethi- 
opian take thirty men of the royal guards and cords with 
them and draw the prophet up immediately. The Ethiopian 
having done so, left Jeremiah in prison at the king's com- 
mand, who secretly sent for, and adjured him to give 
him counsel from God. The prophet again pressed him to 
surrender; but false shame and fear prevented the king from 
followinor his advice. In the mean time all the horrors of 



286 KINGS. 

famine and pestilence as described by Jeremiah in his Lam- 
entations prevailed in the beleaguered city. The children 
and sucklings swooned in the streets, saying to their mothers; 
"Where is corn and wine ? The young and the old lay on the 
ground in the streets, and women even ate the infants they 
had swaddled with their hands. Nevertheless the inhabi- 
tants bore the siege with courage and patience, dismayed 
neither by the famine nor by the pestilence, for eighteen 
months. At length the catastrophe came. About midnight 
on the ninth day of the fourth month, in the eleventh year 
of Zedekiah, the besiegers silently entered the sleeping city, 
seized the Temple and posted themselves there on the high 
vantage-ground. Quickly the alarm spread far and wide, 
and Zedekiah, with the poor remains of his army, fled 
through the opposite gate towards Jericho, hoping to find 
safety on the other side of the Jordan; but at break of day 
the Babylonians pursued and overtook him not far from Jeri- 
cho. He was carried to Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah, a place 
in the Lebanon and about ten days' march from Jerusalem. 
Zedekiah spoke with his conqueror face to face. With a 
refinement of cruelty, Nebuchadnezzar first slew his sons 
before his face, and then put out the eyes of the unhappy 
father, and loaded him with fetters of brass, and thus the 
last king of the royal house of David, blind and childless, 
was led away into the foreign prison of Babylon, where he 
remained a close prisoner till his death. And these things 
happened according to two remarkable*predictions delivered 
against this unhappy prince by Jeremiah and Ezekiel, viz. : 
that his eyes should see the eyes of the king of Babylon, as 
Jeremiah prophesied, and that he should not see Babylon, 
though he was to die there, as predicted by Ezekiel. 

Thus Judah was carried aWay out of their land, about 860 
years after they were put in possession of it by Joshua; 468 
years after David began to reign over it; 388 years from the 
division of the ten tribes, and 134 years from the destruction 
of the kingdom of Israel. 

Arise, Jerusalem ! who hast dranken from the hand of the Lord, the 
cup of His fury, the dregs of the cup of trembling, thou hast druuken, 
thou hast wruna: them out. — Isa. 51, 17. 



165. DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM. GEDALIAH. 

(2 Kings. 25, 8-26. Jeremiah 39^4. 52.) 



f 



Now the king of Babylon sent Nebuzaradan, the general 
of his army, to Jerusalem, to pillage and burn the Temple 
and the royal palace, to lay the city in nuns, and to trans- J 



i 



KINGS. 287 

plant the people into Babylon. The general did accordingly. 
On the seventh day of the fifth month (3N*) Nebuzaradan 
returned to Jerusalem. Two days were occupied in collect- 
ing the booty that was still to be found in the Temple and 
the city. On the third day (nxD T}ywn,^ the ninth day of the 
month Ab) the Temple and the city were committed to the 
flames. 

He then removed the people, and took Seraiah, the 
high priest, and Zephaniah, the priest that was next to him, 
the rulers who guarded the Temple, seven friends of Zede- 
kiah, his scribe, and sixty other rulers as prisoners, and 
carried them to the king at Riblah. Here, at the king's com- 
mand, the high-priest and the rulers were beheaded. Nebu- 
chadnezzar himself led all the rest captives to Babylon, He 
left the poor and those that had deserted in the country, and 
appointed Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, who was the friend 
and protector of Jeremiah, for their governor. Gedaliah 
was a man of a gentle and righteous disposition. He ordered 
the people to cultivate the ground, and pay an appointed 
tribute to the king of Babylon. Before leaving, Nebuzar- 
adan took Jeremiah, the prophet, out of prison, and tried to 
persuade him to go with him to Babylon. But the prophet 
had no inclination to follow him, nor to dwell anywhere else ; 
but expressed a wish to live in the ruins of his country, and 
in the midst of its destruction. When the general under- 
stood what Jeremiah's purpose was, he enjoined Gedaliah to 
take all possible care of him, and to supply him with what- 
ever he wanted, and after having given the prophet rich pres- 
ents, he dismissed him. Then Jeremiah went to Gedahah, 
the son of Ahikam to Mizpeh, and dwelt with him among 
the people who were left in the land. 

Now when all the captains of the forces heard that the 
king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor in the land, 
they came to him to Mizpeh, even Ishmael, the son of Neth- 
aniah, of the seed royal, Johanan and Jonathan the sons of 
Kareah, and others, they and their men. And Gedaliah 
swore to them and to their men, saying: Fear not to serve 
the Chaldeans; dwell in the land, and serve the king of Baby- 
lon, and it shall be well with you. But in the seventh 
month, Ishmael came with ten men to Gedaliah, and treacher- 
ously murdered him, and many of the Jews and the Chaldeans 
that were with him at Mizpeh,^ and compelled the wretched 
remnant of the Jews to retire with him towards the country 

* Hebrew devotion still commemorates the desolation of Jerusalem by solemn 
fast and humiliation. 

2 Gedaliah's death was afterwards observed as a national fast in the seventh 
month Cn'hi: UW. 



•288 KiXGS. 

of the Ammonites. But Johanan, the son of Kareah, raised 
a force to revenge this mad and cruel act, pursued Ishmael, 
overtook him, and recovered from him the people whom he 
had forced to follow him: but >the assassin himself escaped 
with eight men to his place of refuge. Johanan, through fear 
of the Chaldeans, discrediting Jeremiah's prophecy, carried 
the remnant of the people that he had recovered from Ish- 
mael and the prophet Jeremiah into Egypt. Here, accord- 
ing to one tradition, Jeremiah was stoned by his own people; 
wdiile, according to another, he afterwards went to Babylon, 
and died there. 

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked : who 
can know it 1 — ^Jerera. 17, 9. 



166. THE LAMENTATIONS OF JEREMIAH. 

It came to pass that after Israel was carried away captive, and Jerusa- 
lem made desolate, that the prophet Jeremiah bewailed Jerusalem with 
this Lamentation, and, bitterly weeping and mourning, said : 

How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people ! how is she 
become as a widow ! She that was great among the nations, and princess 
among the provinces, how is she become tributary ! She weepeth sore in 
the night, and her tears are on her cheeks. Among all her lovers she has 
none to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, — 
they have become her enemies. Judah is gone into captivity, she dwelleth 
among the heathen, she findeth no rest. The ways of Zion do mourn, 
because none come to the solemn feasts : all her gates are desolate : her 
priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness. Is it noth- 
ing to you, all ye that pass by 1 Behold, and see if there be any sorrow 
like to my sorrow, which is done to me, v/herewith the Lord has afflicted 
me in the day of His fierce anger. For these things I weep ; my eye run- 
neth down Avith water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul 
is far from me : my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed. 
Zion spreadeth forth her hands, and there is none to comfort her. 

The Lord is righteous ; for I have rebelled against His commandments. 
Hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow : my virgins and my 
young men are gone into captivity ; the children and the sucklings swoon 
in the streets of the city. They say to their mothei-s : Where is the corn 
and wine ? When they swooned as the wounded in the streets of the city, 
when their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom. What thing 
shall I liken to thee, daughter of Jerusalem 1 What shall I equal to 
thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion ? for thy breach 
is great like the sea: who can heal thee'? All that pass by, clap their 
hands at thee ; they hiss and wag their head at the daughter of Jerusa- 
lem, saying : Is this the city that men call : The perfection of beauty. The 
joy of the whole earth? The Lord has done that which He had devised ; 
He has fulfilled His word that He had commanded in the days of old : He 
has thrown down, and has not pitied. 

Remember, Lprd, whnt has befallen, look down on our reproach. Our 
heritage is gone to strangers, our home to foreigners. Our skins are like 
an oven, parched by the fierce heat of famine. Young men are grinding 
at the mill, boys faint beneath loads of wood. The elilers from the gate have 
ceased, young men from their music. The crown is fallen from our head. 



KINGS. 289 

"Woe ! woe ! that we have sinned. 'Tis therefore that our hearts are faint, 
therefore our eyes are dim. For Zion's mountain is desolate, the foxes 
walk on it. Thou, O Lord, remaincst for ever ; Thy throne from jxenera- 
tion to generation. Wherefore dost Thou forget us for ever, and forsake 
us so long time ? Turn Thou us to Thee, O Lord, and we shall be 
turned ; renew our days as of old. 



167. THE PROPHET OBADIAH. 

Obadiah, of whose personal history nothing certain is known, is sup- 
posed to have prophesied after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Chal- 
deans (.588, C. E.). He announced the destruction of Edom for their 
pride, violence, as well as for their unseemly rejoicing after the downfall 
of Jerusalem. He also foretold the restoration of Judah and its victory 
over all enemies. 

Thus says the Lord concerning Edom : The pride of thy heart hath 
deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rocks, whose habita- 
tion is high ; that saith in his heart : Who shall bring me down to the 
ground ? Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set 
thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord. 
For thy violence against thy brother Jacob, shame shall cover thee, and 
thou shalt be cut off for ever. On the day that thou stoodest on the other 
side, on the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and 
foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou 
wast as one of them. B|t thou shouldst not have looked on the dayi of 
thy brother on the day that he became a stranger ; neither shouldst thou 
have rejoiced over the children of Judah on the day of their destruction ; 
neither shouldst thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress. Neither 
shouldst thou have stood in the cross-way, to cut off those of his that did 
escape '^ neither shouldst thou have delivered up those of his that did 
remain in the day of distress. For the day of the Lord is near upon all 
the heathen : as thou hast done, it shall be done to thee : thy reward shall 
return upon thy own head. But upon Mount Zion shall be deliverance, 
and there shall be holiness ; and the house of Jacob shall possess their 
possessions. And saviours shall come up to Mount^Zion to judge the 
Mount of Esau ; and the kingdom shall be the Lord's. 



168. EZEKIEL AFTER THE DESTRUCTION OF 
JERUSALEM. 

(Ezek. 34. 37.) 

Jerusalem had already been in ruins eighteen months, as 
Ezekiel had foretold to the exiled captives. Nevertheless, 
the false prophets did not cease to deceive the people. Then 
the hand of G-od came upon Ezekiel. He reproves, in the 
name of God, the ill-conduct of these prophets and the shep- 
herds of Israel in general ; and promises a general restora- 
tion of God's people, and their future happy condition under 
the government of God himself: 

1 Behold his fall with satisfaction. 

2 Probably the Edomites availed themselves of their intermediate position to 
cut ofl" the Jews tliat were lleeiujj to Egypt. 

13 



290 KINGS.' 

Son of man, prophesy aj^ainst the shepherds ^ of Israel, prophesy, and 
say to them : Thus saith the Lord God to the shepherds : Woe be to the 
shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves ! should not the shepherds 
feed the flocks ? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill 
them that are fed : but ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not 
strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye 
bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought back that Avhich 
was gone astray, neither have ye sought that which was lost ; but with force 
and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because 
there is no shepherd : and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, 
when they were scattered. My shcc]) wandered through all the mountains, 
and upon every high hill : yea, My flock was scattered upon all the face of 
the earth, and none did search or seek after them. Therefore, ye shep- 
herds, hear the word of the Lord ! Thus saith the Lord God : Behold, I am 
against the shepherds ; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause 
them to cease from feeding the flock. Behold, I, even I, will both search 
My sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock on the 
day that he is among his sheep that are scattered ; so will I seek out My 
sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scat- 
tered in the cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the 
people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their 
own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and 
in all the inhabited places of the country. And I, the Lord, will be their 
God, and My servant David a prince among them ; I the Lord have 
spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will 
cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land : and they shall dwell safely 
in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and 
the places round about My hill a blessing ; and I will cause the shoAver to 
come down in its season ; there shall be showers of blessing. And the 
tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, 
and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, 
when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the 
hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more 
be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beasts of the land devour them ; 
but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will 
raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed 
with hunger in thg land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more. 
Thus shall they know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that 
they, even the house of Israel, are My people, saith the Lord God. And 
ye My flock, the flock of My pasture, and I am your God, saith the Lord 
God. 

The dead hope of the exiled captives revived: 

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the Spirit 
of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of 
bones, and caused me to pass by them round about : and behold, there 
were very many in the open valley ; and lo, they were very dry. And 
He said to me : Son of man ! can these bones live ? and I answered : O 
Lord God ! Thou knowest. Again He said to me : Prophesy upon these 
bones, and say to them : O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord ! 
Thus saith the Lord God to these bones : Behold, I will cause breath to 
enter into you, and ye shall live : and I will lay sinews upon you, and will 
bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, 
and ye shall live ; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. So I prophe- 
sied as I was commanded : and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and 
behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And 

1 Shepherd^ in the prophetical writings, comprehends both civil and ecclesiastical 
governors. 



KINGS. 291 

when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the 
skin covered them above ; but there was no breath in them. Then said 
He unto me : Prophesy to the wind, prophesy, son of man ! and say to 
the wind : Thus saith the Lord God : Come from the four winds, O breath ! 
and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as He 
commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood 
up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Then He said unto me : 
Son of man ! these bones are the Avhole house of Israel ; behold, they 
say : Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost ; we are cut off for our 
parts. Therefore prophesy and say to them : Thus saith the Lord God : 
Behold, My people ! I will open your graves, and cause you to come up 
out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall 
know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O My people ! 
and brought you up out of your graves ; and shall put My Spirit in you, 
and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land : then shall ye 
know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord. 



169. THE JEWS IN THE BABYLON EXILE. 

The Jews carried into captivity were transplanted into 
Babylon, where they dwelled together in considerable bodies 
as colonists, and became possessed of property. More we 
do not know of their treatment as captives. The better por- 
tion of the captives were home-sick, longed eagerly to return 
to the land. of their fathers; this was their highest desire. 
The feelings of the patriotic and religious exiles are left on 
record in many an elegiac Psalm, that was sung in the for-* 
eign land. 

PLAINTIVE OR MOURNFUL POEM. 

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, 

Yea, we wept when we remembered Zion. 

We hanged our harps on the willows in the midst of it. 

For there they that had carried us captive asked of us a song; 

And they that made us mourn asked for mirth, 

[Saying] ' Sing us one of the songs of Zion.* 

How can we sing a song of Jehovah in a foreign land 1 

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget [its cunning]. 

Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth. 

If I do not remember thee. 

If I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy. (Ps. 137.) 



THE 

BOOK OF DAIS^IEL 



170. DANIEL AND HIS COMPANIONS AT NEBU- 
CHADNEZZAR'S COURT. 

(Daniel 1.) 

King Nebuchadnezzar commanded Ashpenaz, tlie chief of 
his house officers, to choose a number of royal and noble 
Hebrew youths; who were remarkable for beauty and intel- 
ligence, to be brought up at his court, and trained in the 
language and learning of the Chaldeans. The King appoint- 
ed them a daily provision of food and wine from his own 
table, intending so to feed them for three years, until they 
should come and wait upon him. 
i Among those that were chosen were Daniel,^ Hananiah, 
MiSHAEL, and Azariah, named by the chief officer Belte- 
SHAzzAR,^ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. But Daniel 
and his three companions resolved not to defile themselves 
with the food and wine coming from the King's table, ^ and 
having been brought by God into favor with Melzar, their 
trainer, they requested him to give them pulse (that is, veg- 
etables,) to eat and water to drink. But he replied: I fear 
my lord, the King; for, if after a while, he should see your 
faces look paler and thinner than those of the other young 
men who eat food from the King's table, you would endan- 
ger my head to the King. And Daniel replied: Prove thy 
servants, I pray thee, ten days. So he consented to them in 
this matter, and by God's blessing they so flourished upon 
this ten days' trial of a vegetable diet and water, that they 
were henceforward not interfered with, while in learning 
and understanding they quickly outstripped all the other 
youths. 

^S&{"'J"l (God is my Judge). According to the statement of Josephus, Daniel 
was a prince of the royal house. 

2 1, e. The Prince of Bel. 

3 They refused to eat of food offered to idols. It was a custom to offer some 
part of the beasts which they killed for food iu sacrifice to their gods ; and to pour 
out some of their wine as a'libatiou to them. 



DANIEL. 293 

Now at the end of the three years, the chief officer 
brought them in before the King. Nebuchadnezzar com- 
muned with them, and among all those who had been 
chosen for his servants was found none like Daniel, Hana- 
niah, Mishael, and Azariah; they, therefore, were admitted 
to stand before the King. 

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will 
not depart from it. — Prov. 22, 6. 

Eemember thy Creator in the days of thy youth. — Ecel. 12, 1. 



171. DANIEL INTERPRETING NEBUCHADNEZ- 
ZAR'S DREAM. HIS ADVANCEMENT. 

(Daniel 2.) 

In the second year of his reign, ^ Nebuchadnezzar dreamed 
a dream that troubled him so that he could not sleep. 
Then he commanded to call all the wise men of Babylon, 
and he said to them: I have dreamed a dream, and am 
troubled because of it. Then the wise men spoke to the 
King: king, Hve for ever! tell thy servants the dream, 
and we will show the interpretation. The king answered: 
The thing has gone from me: if ye will not make known to 
me the dream itself, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall 
be cut to pieces, and your houses shall be torn down and 
made into heaps. The wise men said again: There is not 
a man upon the earth who can show the king's matter. 
Then the king was full of wrath, and furious, and ordered 
the execution of the whole tribe of astrologers, magicians, 
and wise men. In this decree the death also of Daniel and 
his companions was involved. Now when he had heard of 
it, he tried to obtain, through Arioch, the captain of the King's 
guard, an audience, and he besought the King for some delay, 
promising that, if time should be given him, he would show 
the dream and its interpretation. His request having been 
complied with, Daniel made the thing known to his three 
companions, and they desired mercies of the God of heaven 
concerning this secret. Then was it revealed to Daniel in a 
night vision, and he blessed the God of heaven. 

Now Daniel went to the King and said: There is a God in 
heaven who reveals secrets, and makes known to the King 
Nebuchadnezzer what shall be in the latter days. Thy 
dream and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these: 
Thou, O King! sawest, and behold a great image! This 
great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before 

* Of his reigning alone, having reigned some years with his father. 
25* 



294 DANIEL. 

thee; and the form thereof was terrible. Its head was of 
fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its 
thighs of brass, its legs of iron, its feet part of iron and part 
of clay. Thou sawest it, until there came a stone, cut out 
without hands, that struck the image upon its feet and broke 
them to pieces. Then the image fell, and the iron, the clay, 
the brass, the silver, and the gold were all broken together 
into pieces and became like the chaff of the threshing-floor; 
and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for 
them. But the stone that smote the image became a great 
mountain, and filled the whole earth. This was the King's 
dream! And now we will tell the interpretation thereof 
before the king. Thou, king! whom the God of heaven 
has given power, and strength, and glory, thou art this head 
of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom infe- 
rior to thine; then the third kingdom of brass, which shall 
bear rule over all the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall 
be strong as iron: and shall break to pieces and bruise all. 
And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's 
clay, and part of iron, this kingdom shall be divided; and 
shall be partly strong, and partly broken. And in the days 
of these kingdoms shall the God of heaven set up a king, 
dom, which shall never be destroyed, and shall not be left to 
other people; but it shall break into pieces and consume all 
the other kingdoms, but it shall stand for ever, as the stone 
cut out of the mountain had broken the image in Nebuchad- 
nezzar's dream. The great God has made known to the 
king what shall come to pass hereafter, and the dream is 
certain, and the interpretation thereof sure. Then the king 
Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face before Daniel and said: 
It is true that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of 
kings. Then the king made Daniel a great man, and made 
him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief 
over all the wise men of Babylon. And because Daniel 
requested it, he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego over 
the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel was a 
constant attendant at the King's court. 

A passionate man abounds in transgression. — Prov. 29, 22. 

The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the 
righteous. — Prov. 15, 29. 

For the Lord gives wisdom, from His mouth proceeds knowledge and 
understanding. — Prov. 2, 6. 



172. THE THREE MEN IN THE FIERY FURNACE. 

(Daniel 3.) 

Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose 



DANIEL. 295 

height was threescore cubits (or fifteen times larger than a 
man), and the breadth thereof six cubits. He set it up in 
the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. Then 
Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the princes, 
the captains, the officers, and all the rulers of the provinces, 
to come to the dedication of the image which he had set up. 
Now a herald cried aloud: To you it is commanded, peo- 
ple, nations of all languages ! That at what time ye hear the 
sound of the cornet, flute, harp, and all kinds of instruments, 
ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchad- 
nezzar the king has set up. And whoso falleth not down 
and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of 
a burning fiery furnace. The command was obeyed, and men 
of all nations and languages who had been brought under 
Nebuchadnezzar's dominion fell down before the idol. But 
some of the Chaldeans came to J;he king, and spoke against 
the Jews, saying: There are certain Jews whom thou hast 
set over the affairs of the province of Babylon,^ Shadrach, 
Meshach, and Abed-nego, these men, king! have not re- 
garded thee; they do not worship the golden image which 
thou hast set up. Then Nebuchadnezzar sent in a rage for 
these men, and said to them: If you worship not the golden 
image which I have set up, you shall be cast that very hour 
into the midst of a burning, fiery furnace; and who is that 
God that shall deliver you out of my hands ? And they an- 
swered and said to the king: Nebuchadnezzar ! we do not 
think it necessary to answer thee in this matter. Behold, 
our God whom we serve, is able to dehver us, and if not, be 
it known to thee, king ! that we never will serve thy 
gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up, 
and will abide by the consequences. Then was Nebuchad- 
nezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed, 
and he commanded that they should heat the furnace seven 
times hotter than it was heated before. Then Shadrach, Me- 
shach, and Abed-nego were bound and thrown into the fiery 
furnace. And because it was exceeding hot, the flame 
killed the men who cast Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego 
in. But soon Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and 
rose up in haste, and said : Did not we cast three men bound 
into the midst of the fire ? They answered and said : True, 
king ! Lo, he exclaimed, I see four men loose, walking 
in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt, and the form 
of the fourth is like a son of gods. Then Nebuchadnezzar 
came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and 

' Who have been raised by thy favor, and are under the highest obligations to 
thee. Daniel was not at Babylon, or was too high, in office for any one to venture 
to accuse him. 



296 DANIEL. 

said: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the 
most high God ! come forth, and come hither. And the 
three men came forth of the midst of the fire before all the 
rulers and people, without one single injury either to their 
clothes, or even to a hair of their heads. Then Nebuchad- 
nezzar said : Blessed be your God ! who has sent His angeh 
and has delivered His servants that trusted in Him. There* 
fore, I make a decree: That whoever speak any thing amiss 
against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, shall 
die ; because there is no other God who can deliver after this 
sort. 

When thou passest through the waters, I Avill be with thee; and 
through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest 
through the fire, thou shalt not be burned ; neither shall the flame kindle 
upon thee. — Isa. 43, 2. 



173. DANIEL INTERPEETS THE HANDWRITING 
ON THE WALL. THE CAPTURE OF BABYLON. 

(Daniel, 5.) 

Babylon, the city "built with blood" (Habak. 2, 12.), was to sink in 
blood. Evil-merodach, the son and successor of Nebuchadnezzar, who 
released Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, from prison was murdered after 
a two years' reign by Neriglissar, his sister's husband,^ and was succeeded 
by an infant son, named Labrosoarchad, who was murdered after a reign 
of nine months. Upon his death the crown apparently reverted to an- 
other son'^ of Nebuchadnezzar, named Nabonned. In the fifteenth year 
of his reign (or C. E. 539) he made Belshazzar, his son, his co-regent and 
governor of Babylon. Cyrus, the king of Media and I^rsia, having de- 
feated Nabonned^ in the open field, appeared before Babylon and besieged 
it. Belshazzar, the second king, and the inhabitants of Babylon were 
confident and secure, because they thought the city impregnable and had 
twenty years' provision within its walls. But its doom was near at hand. 
The efforts of the great Persian king were directed to divert the stream of 
the Euphrates, which surrounded Babylon, and to enfer the c^ty by its bed. 

When the work was complete, Belshazzar gave the Persian 
king the opportunity for a surprise by a great festival* which 
he had made to a thousand of his lords in his palace. 

While he got heated by the wine, he sent for the 
golden and silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar had taken 
from the Temple at Jerusalem, and he drank wine out of 
them with his princes, lords, and wives, and praised the gods 
of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of 
stone. In the midst of his mirth and cups, he suddenly saw 

' Called by Jerem., 39, 3, 13, Nergal-sharezer, the Rab-mag, or high priest. 

2 Or, as others think, the husband of another of his daughters. 

3 Labynetus, according to Herodotus. 

* Probably an anniversary feast, since, according to Herodotus, Cyrus knew of 
it beforehand. 



DANIEL. 297 

the fingers of a man's hand, which wrote in the full light of 
the candelabra upon the plaster of the wall, upon which he 
cast his eye. He was struck with astonishment and dread, 
changed color and trembled so violently that his knees even 
smote one against another. He cried aloud to bring the 
wise men. They caine, but none of them could read and in- 
terpret the writing. Now the queen said: king, live for 
ever ! Let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy face 
be sad. There is a man in thy kingdom in whom is the 
spirit of God, and in those days when thy father Nebuchad- 
nezzar lived, great wisdom was found in him. Let Daniel 
be called, whom the king named Belteshazzar, and he will tell 
the interpretation.^ And when Daniel came, the king said 
to him: I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the 
gods is in thee, and that light and understanding and excel- 
lent wisdom is found in thee. Now all the wise men that 
have been brought in before me, could not read this writing 
on the wall nor show the interpretation of the thing. If 
thou canst read the writing, and make known to me the in- 
terpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and 
have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ^ 
ruler in the kingdom. 

Then Daniel answered and said before the King: Let thy 
gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I 
will read the writing to the King, and make known to him 
the interpretation. Because thou hast lifted up thyself 
against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the ves- 
sels of His house before thee, and thou, and thy lords, and 
thy wives have drunk wine in them. And thou hast praised 
the idols of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, 
which see not, nor hear, nor know: but the God in whose 
hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou 
not glorified. Therefore the part of the hand was sent from 
Him, and was this writing written. And these are the 
words of it: 

pp^.3? Spn XJD Xjp 

MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. 

This is the interpretation: MENE: God has numbered thy 
kingdom, and finished it. TEKEL: Thou art weighed in 
the balances, and art found wanting. PERES: Thy king- 
dom is DIVIDED, and given to the Medes and Persians. 
Then Belshazzar commanded, and they clothed Daniel with 
scarlet, and put a chain of gold about his neck, and made 

1 Without doubt Daniel had been deprived of his office during the stormy inter- 
val which followed the forty-three years' long reign of Nebuchadnezzar. 

2 Belshazzar was himself the second ruler, his father being the first, and he gave 
Daniel the post next in dignity and power to his own. 



298 DANIEL. 

a proclamation concerning him, that he should be the third 
ruler in the kingdom. That same night came Cyrus with 
the army of the Medes, and Belshazzar the King of the 
Chaldeans was slain, together with his nobles, amidst their 
revelling as the prophet Jeremiah^ prophesied. And Da- 
rius,^ the Median, took the kingdom, being about 62 years 
old, who reigned about two years, and then Cyrus took 
possession of the whole empire. 

Jeremiah's prophecy on the severe judgment of God 
against Babylon (Jerem. 51): 

Babylon hath been a golden cup in the Lord's hand, that made all the 
earth drunken ; the nations have drunk of her wine ; therefore the 
nations are mad. Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed : howl for 
her ; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed. We would 
have healed Babylon, but she is not healed ; forsake her, and let us go 
every one into his own country ; for her judgment reacheth to heaven, 
and is lifted up even to the skies. The Lord has brought forth our 
righteousness : ^ come, and let us declare in Zion the work of the Lord 
our God. Make bright the arrows ; gather the shields : the Lord has 
raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes,* for His device is against 
Babylon, to destroy it ; because it is the vengeance of the Lord, the ven- 
geance of His temple.^ Set up the standard upon the walls of Babylon, 
make the watch strong, set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes : for 
the Lord has both devised and done that which He spoke against the in- 
habitants of Babylon. Behold, I am against thee, O destroying moun- 
tain, saith the Lord, Avhich destroyest all the earth : and I will stretch 
out my hand upon thee, and roll thee down from the rocks, and will 
make thee a burnt mountain. And they shall not take of thee a stone 
for a corner, nor a stone for foundations ; but thou shalt be desolate for 
ever, saith the Lord. Set ye up a standard in the land, blow the trumpet 
among the nations, prepare the nations against her, call together against 
her the kingdoms of Ararat,^ Minni,^ and Ashchenaz;^ appoint a cap- 
tain against her ; cause the horses to come up as the bristling locusts. 
Prepare against her the nations with the kings of the Medes, the captains 
thereof, and all the rulers thereof, and all the land of his dominion. And 
the land shall tremble and sorrow ; for every purpose of the Lord shall 
be performed against Babylon, to make the land of Babylon a desolation 
without an inhabitant. The mighty men of Babylon have forborne to 
fight ^ they have remained in their holds: their might has failed; they 
became as women : theyi*^ have burned her dwelling-places ; her bars are 
broken. One post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet 
another, to show the king of Babylon that his city is taken at one end, 
and that the passengers are stopped, and the reeds they have burned with 
fire,ii and the men of war are affrighted. For thus saith the Lord of 

1 Cornp. page 299. 

2 Either Astyages, grandfather of Cyrus, or Cyaxares, Cyrus's uncle. The last 
supposition agrees with the account of Josephus, who identities this Darius with 
Cyaxares II., the son of Astyages. 

3 Vindicated our (the Jews) cause. 

4 Cyrus and Darius. 

^ Ironical advice to Babylon. 

6. 7, 6 Tiie greater and less Armenia, Phrygia. 

* The Babylouiaus gave Cyrus battle, but being overthrown, they durst never 
fight more. 

'0 The enemy have. 

'•Herodotus mentions a marsh eet fire to by the soldiers who had plenty of 
torches to make way for their entrance. 



DANIEL. 299 

hosts, the God of Israel ; the daughter of Babylon is like a threshing- 
floor, it is time to thresh her : yet a little while, and the time of her har- 
vest shall come. Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has devoured me, 
he has crushed me, he has made me an empty vessel, he has swallowed 
me up like a dragon, he has filled his belly with my delicates, he has cast 
me out. The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon, shall 
the inhabitant of Zion say : and my blood upon the inhabitants of Chal- 
dea, shall Jerusalem say. Therefore thus says the Lord : Behold, I will 
plead thy cause, and take vengeance for thee; and I will dry up her sea,i 
and make her springs dry. And Babylon shall become heaps, a dwelling- 
place for dragons, an astonishment and a hissing, without an inhabit- 
ant. They shall roar together like lions : they shall yell as lions' whelps. 
In their heaf'^ will I make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, 
that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith 
the Lord. I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, like rams 
with he-goats. How is Sheshach ^ taken ! and how is the praise of the 
whole earth surprised ! how has Babylon become an astonishment among 
the nations ! 



174. DANIEL IN THE DEN OF LIONS. 

(Daniel, 6.) 

Darius, the Midian, took the kingdom, being ahout 63 
years old. It pleased him to set over the kingdom a hun- 
dred and twenty princes, and over these three presidents; 
of whom Daniel was first, that the princes might give 
accounts to them, and the king should have no damage. 
Therefore the presidents and princes dishked Daniel and 
sought to find some fault in him; but he was so wise and 
prudent, that they could accuse him of nothing. He was, 
however, known to be very strict in worshipping his God, 
and here they contrived a plan to do him harm. Then they 
assembled together to the king, and said thus to him: King 
Darius, live for ever! All the presidents of the kingdom, 
the governors, and the princes, have consulted together to 
establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that 
whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty 
days, save of thee, king, he shall be cast into the den of 
lions. Now, king, establish the decree, and sign the 
writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the 
Medes and Persians, which alters not. Therefore king 
Darius signed the writing and the decree. Now when 
Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his 

J The Euphrates. 

2 When they grew hot with wine. 

3 Sheshach = Babel. This word is the oldest specimen of writing in cypher. If 
the Hebrew alphabet be written out in order, and then under it you place the let- 
ters in reverse way, Sheshacli becomes Babel, that is, Babylon. The cypher used 
by Jeremiah is called atbash, a name formed from the two first letters of the He- 
brew alphabet, and the two last placed in a reverse order. 



300 DANIEL. 

house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward 
Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and 
prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did afore- 
time.' Then these men came before the king and said: 
Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Judah, 
regards not thee, king, nor the decree that thou hast 
signed, but makes his petition three times a day. As the 
king himself could not reverse the sentence, he with great 
regret and anxiety was obliged to deliver Daniel up to the 
lions. When they brought him to cast him into the den, the 
king said to him : Thy Gjod whom thou servest continually, 
He will deliver thee. The sentence having been executed, 
a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; 
and the king sealed it with his own signet, ^ and with the 
signet of his lords, and went to his palace, and passed the 
night fasting, and his sleep went from him. Early in the 
morning he arose, and went in haste to the den of hons, and 
cried with a lamentable voice: Daniel, servant of the liv- 
ing God! was thy God able to deliver thee from the lions ? 
Then said Daniel to the king: king, live for ever! My 
God has sent His angel, and has shut the lions' mouths, that 
they have not hurt me: because before Him innocence was 
found in me ; and also before thee, king ! have I done no 
wrong. Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and 
commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. 
Moreover he commanded, and they brought those men who 
had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, 
them, their children, and their wives; and the lions had the 
mastery of them, and broke all their bones in pieces as soon 
as they came into the bottom of the den. Then king Darius 
wrote to all people, and nations of all languages of his land: 
Peace be multiplied to you ! I make a decree: That in every 
dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the 
God of Daniel: for He is the living God, and steadfast for 
ever, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, 
and His dominion shall be even to the end. He delivereth 
and rescueth, and He worketh signs and wonders in heaven 
and on earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the mouths of 
the lions. So Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and 
in the reign of Cyrus the Persian. 

Be guiltless before the Lord and before Israel. — 4 Mos. 32, 22. 
The Lord is known by the iud_<j:ments which he executes ; and the 
wicked is ensnared in the Avork of his own hands. — Ps. 91, 17. 

> He might, certainly, have prayed in a less public manner ; but, as he had been 
seen before, he would not show signs of fear, or dishonor his God by having it 
supposed that he had given up praying, 

2 Probably the king thought that if Daniel escaped the lions, he might be pri- 
vately murdered there. 



THE 

BOOK OF ESTHEE. 



175. KING AHASUERUS MAKES A GREAT FEAST. 

BANISHES VASHTI, AND MAKES 

ESTHER QUEEN. 

(Esther, 1. 2.) 

Now it came to pass in tlie days of Ahasuerus,* who reigned 
from India even to Ethiopia, over a hundred and twenty- 
seven provinces, that he made a feast to all his princes and 
servants, to display his majesty and wealth, in the third year 
of his reign. This feast lasted one hundred and eighty days. 
Then the king made a feast to all the people in the garden 
of the king's palace. The wine was given in golden vessels, 
and in abundance, so that every man might drink as much 
as he wanted. Also Vashti the queen made a feast for the 
women in the royal house. On the seventh day, when the 
heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded the 
seven chamberlains who served in his presence, to bring 
Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to 
show the people and the princes her beauty; for she was fair 
to look on. But the queen Yashti refused to come at the 
king's commandment by his chamberlains; therefore was the 
king very wroth, and his anger burned in him. Then the 
king said to the wise men, who sat the first in the kingdom: 
"What shall we do to the queen Vashti according to law, be- 
cause she has not performed the commandment of the king 
Ahasuerus by the chamberlains? And Memucan^ answered 
before the king and the princes: Vashti the queen has not 
done wrong to the king only, but also to all the princes, and 
to all the people that are in all the provinces of the king 
Ahasuerus. For this deed of the queen shall come abroad 

1 According to Josephus, Artaxerxes Londmanus, who furthered the rebuilding 
of Jerusalem bj- permitting the departure of his favorite Jewish cup-bearer, 
Nehemiah ; according to others, Xerxes. 

2 Memucan is mentioned last ; he was probably the youngest privy counsellor, 
and therefore sneaks first. 

(301) 



302 ESTHER. 

to all women, so that they shall despise their husBands in 
their eyes, when it shall be reported: the king Ahasuerus 
commanded Vashti the queen to be brought in before him, 
but she came not. If it please the king, let there go a royal 
commandment from him, and let it be written among the 
laws of the Persians and the Medes, that it be not altered, 
that Vashti come no more before king Ahasuerus; and let 
the king give her royal estate to another who is better than 
she. And when the king's decree which he shall make shall 
be published throughout all his empire, all the wives shall 
give to their husbands honor, both to great and small. And 
the saying pleased the king and the princes, and the king did 
according to the word of Memucan. For he sent letters 
through all the different provinces of his kingdom, com- 
manding that every man should be ruler in his own house, 
and that this law should be made known to all the people. 

After these things, when the wrath of king Ahasuerus 
was appeased, he remembered Vashti, and what was decreed 
against her. Then the king's servant said to him : Let there 
be fair young virgins sought for the king, and be gathered 
together in all the provinces of his kingdom, and let the 
maiden who pleases the king be queen instead of Vashti. 
And the thing pleased the king ; and he did so. 

Now in Shushan ^ there was a certain Jew, whose name was 
MoRDECAi, a Benjamite, one of the captains, whom Nebuchad- 
nezzar had carried away from Jerusalem with Jeconiah, or 
Jehoiachin, king of Judah. He had a cousin named Esther.'^ 
Her father and mother were dead; but when they died, Mor- 
decai had taken Esther to his house, and since that time had 
brought her up as his own daughter. And the maiden was 
fair and beautiful. So it came to pass, when the king's com- 
mandment was made known, and many maidens were gath- 
ered together at Shushan the palace, that Esther was brought 
there among them, and given to the care of the king's oflBcer 
who was the keeper of the women. Now when every maid's 
turn had come to go in to the king, whatsoever ornament or 
attendant she desired was given her. But when Esther's 
turn had come, she required nothing but what the officer had 
appointed. And Esther obtained favor in the sight of all 
them that looked upon her. So Esther was taken to king 
Ahasuerus into his house-royal in the tenth month, which is 
the month Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign. The 
king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained 
grace and favor in his sight more than all the virgins ; so 

^ Susa. Under the Persian monarchy one of the royal cities. 
" IPpK in Persian a star.^ before called Hadassah (myrtle). 



ESTHER. . 303 

that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her 
queen instead of Yashti. Then the king made a great feast 
to all his princes and his servants, that was called Esther's 
feast, and he gave gifts to his servants for her sake. Esther 
did not make known to the king what nation she was derived 
from, for Mordecai had advised her not to tell it, and she 
was still careful to do all that Mordecai commanded her, as 
willingly as at the time when she was brought up with him. 

Mordecai walked before the court of the women's house 
every day to know how Esther did, and what should become 
of her. In those days, while he sat at the king's gate, two 
of the king's chamberlains, Bigthan and Teresh, of those 
w^ho kept the door, were wroth, and sought to lay hands on 
the king Ahasuerus. When the thing was known to Mor- 
decai, he told it to Esther the queen ; and Esther certified the 
king thereof in Mordecai's name. Inquisition was made of 
the matter, and it was found out; therefore they were both 
hanged on a tree: and it was written in the book of the 
Chronicles before the king. 

Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the 
cup, when it goes down smoothly. At the last it bites like a serpent, and 
stings like an adder. — Prov. 23/31. 32. 

Grace and glory does the Lord dispense ; He does not withhold any 
good thing from those who walk in uprightness. — Ps. 84, 12. 

Have I eaten mv moi-sel myself alone ? has the fatherless not eaten 
thereof?— Job, 31, 17. 

176. HAMAN'S EXALTATION, AND HIS PLANS 
AGAINST THE JEWS. 

(Esther, 3.) 

After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman, 
the son of Hammedatha, the Agagite,^ and set his seat above 
all the princes that were with him. All the king's servants 
that were in the king's gate bowed, and reverenced Haman; 
for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mor- 
decai did not bow down, nor did he prostrate himself, 
although the king's servants expostulated with him, to make 
him sensible of his duty and his danger. ^ When Haman 
was told of it, he was highly enraged at him. He disdained, 
however, to lay hands on Mordecai alone; but resolved to 
make Mordecai's whole nation suffer, and to destroy all the 
Jews that were throughout the kingdom of Ahasuerus. In 
the first month, — that is, the month Nisan (March or April), 
in the twelfth year of the king Ahasuerus, they cast Pur,^ — that 

^ Or, the Amalekite ; Agag was the comtQon name of their kings. 

2 Haman expected a species of di\ine adoration, which Mordecai refused. 

3 A corrupted Persic word for pari, signifying a lot. 



304 « ESTHER. 

is, the lot, before Haman to find out whicli day would be the 
lucky day for the accomplishment of the enterprise, and the 
fourteenth of the twelfth month Adar (February or March), 
was taken. Then Haman said to the king: There is a cer- 
tain people scattered abroad and dispersed in all the provinces 
of thy kingdom, whose laws are diverse from all people; 
neither keep they the king's laws: therefore it is not for the 
king's profit to suffer them. If it please the king, let it be 
written that they may be destroyed: and I will pay ten thou- 
sand talents of silver ^ to bring it into the king's treasuries. 
And the king took his ring'^ from his hand, and gave it to 
Haman, the son of Hammedatha, and said: The silver is 
given to thee, the people also, to do with them as it seemeth 
good to thee. Then were the king's scribes called on the 
thirteenth day of the first month, and there was written 
according to all that Haman had commanded to the governors 
who were over every province, to every people after their 
language; in the name of king Ahasuerus was it written, and 
sealed with the king's ring. The letters were sent by posts 
or running-men, into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to 
kill, and to cause to perish all Jews, both young and old, 
little children and women, on one day, even upon the thir- 
teenth day of the twelfth month which is the month Adar, 
and to take the spoil of them for a prey. And in Susa, the 
capital, and in the other towns of the realm, whithersoever 
the Idng's commandment and his decree came, there was great 
mourning among the Jews, and fasting, and weeping and 
wailing; and many lay in sackcloth and ashes. But the king 
and Haman sat down to drink. 

Wherefore does the wicked contemn God ? He has said in his heart : 
Thou wilt not requite it. Thou hast seen it, for Thou beholdest mischief 
and spite, to requite it with Thy hand. — Ps. 10, 13. 14. 

The lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing thereof is of the 
Lord.— Prov. 16, 33. 



177. ESTHER RESOLVES TO INTERCEDE WITH 
THE KING FOR HER PEOPLE. 

(Esther, 4. 5.) 

"When Mordecai heard of all that was done, he rent his 
clothes, put on sackcloth with ashes, went out into the midst 
of the city, and cried with a Idud and a bitter cry. So came 
he even before the king's gate; for none might enter the 
king's palace in sackcloth. Now Esther's maids and her 

' Over sixteen millions of dollars. 

''A law or decree sealed with the king's ring could not bo changed. 



ESTHER. 305 

chamberlains came and told it her. Then was the queen ex- 
ceedingly grieved. She sent raiment to clothe Mordecai, and 
to take away his sackcloth from him, but he received it not. 
Then Esther called for Hatach, one of the king's chamber- 
lains, whom he had appointed to attend upon her, and sent 
him to Mordecai, to know what it was, and why it was. 
And Mordecai told him of all that had happened. He sent 
a copy of the decree to the queen, and charged her to lose no 
time in seeing the king and make request and supplication 
to him for her people. The officer came and told Esther all 
the words of Mordecai. Then Esther sent word to him, say- 
ing: All the king's servants, and all people of the king's pro- 
vinces know that whosoever shall come to the king into the 
inner court, without being called, must be put to death, ex- 
cept such to whom the king shall hold out his golden sceptre, 
that he may live, but I have not been called to come to the 
king's presence these thirty days. Having heard Esther's 
words, Mordecai commanded to answer her: Think not to 
thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house, more than 
all the Jews. For if thou altogether keepest quiet at this 
time, then shall help and dehverance arise to the Jews from 
another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be de- 
stroyed; and who knows whether thou hast not come to the 
kingdom for such a time as this ? Then Esther sent him by 
the same officer this reply: Go, assemble all Jews that are 
in Shushan, and fast for me, and neither eat nor drink three 
days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; 
and so will I go in to the king, though not according to the 
law; and if I perish, I perish. On the third day of the 
fast, Esther dressed in her royal garments, appeared within 
the inner court of the king's palace. The king was seated 
on his royal throne opposite to the gate of the house. And 
when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, 
she obtained favor in his sight: and he held out to Esther 
the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew 
near, and touched the top of the sceptre. Then said the 
king to her: What wilt thou, queen Esther? and what is 
thy request ? it shall be even given thee to the half of the 
kingdom.' Esther answered : If it seem good to the king, let 
the king and Haman come this day to the banquet that I have 
prepared for him. So the king and Haman came to the ban- 
quet that Esther had prepared. At the feast, the king again 
said to Esther: What is thy petition ? it shall be granted thee: 
and what is thy request ? even to the half of the kingdom it 

1 A proverbial expression, as much as to say : I will grant anj'thing in reason, be- 
cause thou art so dear to me. 



306 ESTHER. 

shall be performed. Then answered Esther, and said: My pe- 
tition and my request is: If I have found favor in the sight of 
the king, and if it please the king to grant my petition, and 
to perform my request, let the king and Haman come to an- 
other banquet that I shall make ready for them to-morrow, 
and then I will do as the king has said. Haman went 
forth that day joyful and with a glad heart; but when he 
saw how Mordecai sat there without moving at his ap- 
proach, he was filled with anger, yet he said nothing. 
When he came to his home, he sent and called for his 
friends, and his wife. And Haman boasted to them of his 
riches and greatness, and told them how the king had pro- 
moted him and set him above all the princes, and above all the 
king's other servants. He said moreover: Yea, Esther the 
queen allowed no man to come in with the king to the ban- 
quet that she had made ready, excepting myself. And to- 
morrow I am invited to come again with the king to her 
house. Yet all this is of no avail to me, as long as I see 
Mordecai the Jew sitting at the king's gate. Then his wife 
and his friends said to him: Let a gallows be made fifty 
cubits high, and to-morrow speak to the king that Mordecai 
maybe hanged thereon; then go merrily with the king to 
the banquet. The advice pleased Haman; and he caused 
the gallows to be made forthwith. 

The wicked devises evil against the righteous, and gnashes upon him 
with his teeth — the Lord laughs at him, for He sees that his day is com- 
ing.— Fs. 37, 12, 13. 

Thou shalt not stand by (idly) when thy neighbor's life is in danger. — 
3 Mos., 19, 16. 



118. HAMAN'S FALL AND EXECUTION. 

(Esther, 6, 7.) 

In that same night the king could not sleep, and he ordered 
the Chronictes, or notes of what happened in the kingdom, 
to be brought and read to him. There he found recorded, 
how two of the king's chamberlains had made a conspiracy 
against the king, which Mordecai had discovered. And the 
king said: What honor and dignity has been done to Mor- 
decai for this ? There has nothing been done for him, was 
the answer. And the king said: Who is in the court? 
Now Haman had just come there, that he might ask the 
king's permission to have Mordecai hung on the gallows 
which was made ready for him. At Ahasuerus' command 
Haman came before him, and the king said to him : What 
shall be done to the man whom the king delights to honor ? 



ESTHER. 307 

Haman thought in his heart, to whom would the king delight 
to do honor more than to myself? So he answered: For 
the man whom the king delights to honor let the royal ap- 
parel be brought which the king is wont to wear, and the 
horse that the king rides upon, and the crown royal which is 
set upon his head : and let this apparel and horse be delivered 
to the hand of one of the king's most noble princes, that they 
may array the man withal whom the king delights to honor, 
and lead him on horseback through the streets of the city, 
and proclaim before him: Thus shall it be done to the man 
whom the king delights to honor. Then the king said to 
Haman: Make haste, and take the apparel and the horse, as 
thou hast said, and do even so to Mordecai the Jew, who sits 
at the king's gate: let nothing fail of all that thou hast 
spoken. Haman having obeyed the king's command made 
haste to his home, full of shame, and with his face covered. 
Instead of repeating the story of his greatness, he now told 
his wife and his friends of his misfortune, and they said : If 
Mordecai, before whom thou hast begun to fall, be of the 
seed of the Jews, thou shalt not prevail against him; but 
shalt surely fall before him. While they were still speaking 
together, the king's servants came and hastened to take Ha- 
man to the banquet that Esther had prepared. 

So the king and Haman came to the banquet of Esther 
the queen. And the king again said to Esther: "What is thy 
petition, queen Esther ? and it shaU be granted thee : and 
what is thy request ? and it shall be performed, even to the 
half of the kingdom. Then Esther answered: If I have 
found favor in thy sight, king ! and if it please the king, 
let my hf e be given me at my petition, and my people at my 
request. For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, 
to be slain, and to perish. If we had been sold for bond- 
men and bondwomen, I had held my tongue, although the 
enemy could not repay the king's damage. Who is he, and 
where is he, the king asked in a rage, who durst presume in 
his heart to do so ? The adversary'and enemy is this wicked 
Haman, was Esther's reply. Then Haman trembled before 
the king and the queen. The king arose in his wrath from 
the banquet and went into the palace-garden, but Haman, 
meanwhile, had fallen down in deadly terror before the 
queen and humbly begged for his life. When the king 
returned, one of his officers said: Behold the gallows fifty 
cubits high, which Haman had made for Mordecai, who 
saved the king's life, is standing in the house of Haman. 
Then the king said: Hang him thereon ! This word was 
enough, and Haman was executed. 



308 ESTHER. 

For without cause have they hid for me their net, without cause a pit 
have they dug for my soul. Let destruction come upon him unaAvares, 
and let his net, which he has hid, catch himself with a crash, let him fall 
into it. So shall my soul exult in God, it shall rejoice in His salvation. — 
Ps. 35, 7. 8. 9. 



179. DELIVERANCE OF THE JEWS. ESTABLISH- 
MENT OF THE FEAST OF PURIM. 

(Esther, 8-10.) 

On that day did the king Ahasuerus give the house of 
Haman to Esther the queen. And Mordecai came before 
the king; for Esther had revealed her near relationship to 
Mordecai, and her faith. The king took off his ring which 
he had taken from Haman, "knd gave it to Mordecai.^ Then 
Esther fell down on her knees before the king, and besought 
him with tears to put away the decree of Haman against the 
Jews; for, said she: how can I endure to see the evil that 
shall come to my people ? or how can I endure to see the 
destruction of my kindred ? Now even the king could not 
change the decree, which he had allowed Haman to make, 
because no law or decree of the Medes and Persians, sealed 
with the king's ring, might ever be changed. But the king 
told Esther and Mordecai that they might make another 
decree concerning the Jews, such a one as they pleased, and 
might also seal it with the king's ring. Wherein the king 
granted the Jews to gather themselves together on the 13th 
day of the 12th month, and to stand for their life, to destroy, 
to slay, and to cause to perish all who should try to harm 
them. 

Mordecai was now promoted to great honor as the king's 
favorite: and he went out from the presence of the king in 
royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of 
gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple; and the 
city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad. And the Jews had 
light and gladness and joy and honor. 

As the day approached for the decree of Haman to be 
executed, the Jews, aware that they had many enemies, 
gathered themselves together in their cities, throughout all 
the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, to lay hand on such as 
sought their hurt. And instead of hurting them, all the 
rulers of the provinces, and officers of the king, helped tlie 
Jews, because the fear of Mordecai fell upon them. Some 
of the Jews' enemies, however, would not let them alone, 
and the Jews slew them. In the city of Shushan, they 

» As a eymbol that he was now prime miulBtcr. 



*l 



ESTHER. 309 

destroyed 500 men; among these were tlie ten sons of 
Haman.* 

So God saved Esther and her people from their enemies. 
Then Esther and Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews, telling 
them to keep the 14th and 15th day of the 12th month, 
every year, as a day of feasting and gladness, when they 
should rejoice together, and give presents to one another, 
and gifts to the poor. And because Haman had devised 
against the Jews to destroy them, and had cast Pur^ that is, 
the lot, to ascertain the day most auspicious for the destruc- 
tion of the Jews, these days were called Purim. 

The wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just. — Prov. 13, 22. 

, 1 The Jews did not attack, 'bnt merely acted in self-defence. " They gathered 
together," we are told, "to lay hands on those that sought their hurt^'' 



THE BOOK OF EZRA. 

FEOM THE DECREE OF CYRUS TO THE CLOSE OF 
THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. C. E, 536-400. 



180. THE RETURN FROM CAPTIVITY. 

(Ezra, 1-3.) 

Now in the first^ year of Cyrus king of Persia (C. E., 538,) 
tliat the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might 
be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of 
Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his king- 
dom, and put it also in writing, saying: Thus says Cyrus 
king of Persia: The Lord God of heaven has given me all 
the kingdoms of the earth; and He has charged me to build 
Him a House at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there 
among you of all His people ? his God be with him, and let 
him go up to Jerusalem and build the House of the Lord God 
of Israel. And whoever of the captive people is still left in 
any place where he has his abode, let the people among 
whom he dwells [the heathen population] help him with sil- 
ver, and with gold, beside the freewill offering for the House 
of God in Jerusalem. Then rose up the chief of the fathers 
of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests, and the Levites, 
those whose spirit God had raised "^ to go up to build the 
House of the Lord. And all their neighbors helped them 
with goods, beasts, and precious things. Also Cyrus the 
king brought forth 4500 gold and silver vessels of the House 
of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had carried away out of 
Jerusalem. Bearing these sacred vessels, and large presents, 
some 50,000 of the captives, led by Zerubbabel, a prince of 
the house of David, and by Joshua, a priest of the house of 
Aaron, set forth on their homeward march, and reached their 
destination before the commencement of the rainy season, so 

1 His first year at Babylon, which was the first year of hia sovereignty over the 
Jews, 

2 " Many remained in Babylon, since they were disinclined to relinquish their 
property, '—Josephus, Ant, 11, 1, 

(310) 



EZRA. 311 

that they had been fairly settled down towards the end of 
the summer. 

Thanks to God for the deliverance: 

Had not the Lord been for us, 
Let Israel say — 
Had not the Lord been for ns, 
When men rose up against us : 

Then had they swallowed us up alive, 
When their anger was kindled against us— 
Then had the waters overwhelmed us. 
The stream had gone over our soul — 
Then had gone over our soul 
The proudly swelling waters. 

Blessed be the Lord, who hath not abandoned ns ' 

A prey to their teeth ! 

Our soul, like a bird hath it escaped 

Out of the snare of the fowlers : 

The snare was broken 

And we — Ave escaped. 

Our help is in the Name of the Lord, 

The Creator of heaven and earth. — Ps. 124. 

Joyful acknowledgment of God's mercy in the restoration 
of many of the captives to the Holy Land, and prayer for 
the safe return of the remainder of the exiles:^ 

When the Lord brought back the returning ones of Zion, 

We were as those who dream. 
Then laughter filled our mouth, 

And our tongue a shout of joy. 
Then said they among the heathen : 

" Great things hath the Lord done for them" — 
Great things hath the Lord done for us, 

We became glad. 
Lead back, O Lord, our captive ones, 

As streams in the south country ! 
Those who sow with tears, 

Shall reap with a shout of joy. 
He goeth to and fro amidst weeping, 

Bearing the scattering of the seed — 
He cometh along with a shout of joy, 

Bearing his sheaves. — Ps. 126. 

When the seventh month had come, the people gathered 
themselves together as one man to Jerusalem. Then stood 
up Joshua, the priest, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, 
and restored the old altar of the God of Israel, to offer 
burnt- offerings thereon according to the forms prescribed in 
the Law of Moses, the man of God. From the first day of 
the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings to the 
Lord, although the foundation of the Temple of the Lord 
was not yet laid. But they made the necessary preparations 

1 This psalm, 126, is attributed according to tlie Syriac to the prophets Haggai 
and Zechariah. 



312 EZRA. 

for the construction of the Temple. They gave money to 
the masons, and to the carpenters; and meat, and drink, and 
oil, to the Sidonians and Tyrians, to bring cedar trees from 
Lebanon to the sea of Joppa ^ according to the permission 
granted them by Cyrus, king of Persia. 

Now in the second year of their coming to Jerusalem, in 
the second month, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and 
Joshua the son of Jozadak, appointed the Levites, from 
twenty years old and upward, to set forward the work of the 
house of the Lord. And when the builders laid the founda- 
tion of the Temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their ap- 
parel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph^ with 
cymbals, to praise the Lord, after the ordinance of David 
king of Israel. And they sang together by course in prais- 
ing and giving thanks to the Lord, who is good, and whose 

MERCY ENDURETH FOR EVER TOWARD ISRAEL. And all the peo- 
ple shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, 
because the foundation of the House of the Lord was laid. 
But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, 
who were ancient men, and had seen the first House, wept 
with a loud voice when the foundation of this House was laid 
before their eyes, whilst the people in general shouted aloud 
for joy. 

The Lord does not cast for ever, but though He cause grief, yet will He 
have compassion according to the multitude of His mercies. — Lament., 3, 
31.32. 



181. HOSTILITIES OF THE SAMARITANS. THE 
BUILDING IS HINDERED. 

(Ezra, 4. 5.) 

Now when the adversaries' of Judah and Benjamin heard 
that the children of the captivity intended to build a Temple 
to the Lord God of Israel; then they came to Zerubbabel, 
and to the chief of the fathers, and said: Let us build with 
you, for we seek your God, as you do; and we sacrificed to 
Him since the days of Esar-haddon, who brought us up 
hither. But Zerubbabel, and the rest of the chief of the 
fathers of Israel, said to them: You have nothing to do with 
us to build a house to our God,"* we will build it ourselves as 
Cyrus, king of Persia, has commanded us. Then the Sama- 

^ The natural port of Jerusalem, from which it is distant less than 35 miles. 

2 It would seem as if no descendants of Heman or Jcduthun had returned. 

3 The Samaritans, a mixed race, partly Israelite but chiefly forei>rn. which had 
replaced to some extent the ancient inhabitants alter they were carried into cap- 
tivity by Sargon. 

4 The Samaritans had united idolatrous rites with the worship of Jehovah. 



n 



EZEA. 313 

ritans were angry and did all they could to hinder the build- 
ing, intercepting the supplies of stone and timber, riding into 
the undefended city and cutting down the workmen, jeering 
at these feeble Jews and their enterprise, and especially ca- 
lumniating them at the Persian court. They bribed there 
counselors against them, to frustrate their purpose, all the 
days of Cyrus, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia. 
In the days of Artaxerxes ^ these enemies wrote a letter 
to the king against Jerusalem in this sort: Be it known to 
the king that the Jews who came up to Jerusalem build the 
rebellious and the bad city, they make ready the walls there- 
of and lay the foundations. Be it known now to the king, 
that if this city be built, and the walls set up again, then will 
they not pay tribute, provision, or toll, and so at last shall 
damage be done to the kings. And the king did as the Sa- 
maritans asked him. He sent them the following answer: 
The letter which ye sent to us has been plainly read before 
me. And I commanded, and search has been made, and it 
is found that this city of old time has made insurrection 
against kings, and that rebelhon and sedition have been 
made therein. There have been mighty kings also over Je- 
rusalem, who have ruled over all countries beyond the river; 
and tribute, provision, and toll were paid to them. Give ye 
now commandment to cause these men to cease, and that this 
city be not built, until another commandment shall be given 
from me. Take heed now that ye fail not to do this: why 
should damage grow to the hurt of the kings ? Delighted 
at their success the opponents of the Jews went up in haste 
to Jerusalem to the Jews, and made them to cease by force 
and power. Then ceased the work of the House of God 
which is at Jerusalem. 

Thou hast been favourable, O Lord, unto Thy land, 

Thou hast turned the captivity of Jacob ; 

Thou hast taken away the iniquity of Thy people. 

Thou hast covered all their sin — (Sela.) 

Thou hast drawn in all Thy wrath, 

Thou hast turned from the heat of Thine anger. 

Turn unto us again, God of our salvation, 
And cause Thine indignation against us to cease. 
"Wilt Thou for ever be angry with us, 
Wilt Thou draw out Thine anger to all generations 1 
"Wilt Thou not quicken us again, 
That Thy people may rejoice in Thee ? 
Cause us to see, Lord, Thy loving-kindness, 
And grant us Thy salvation. 

I will hear what God will speak 

Yea, He speaketh peace to His people and to His saints ; 

T i 1 Properly Smerclis, the usurper. 



814 EZRA. 

Only let them not again fall into folly ! 
Yea, nigh unto those who fear Him in His salvation. 
That glory may again dwell in our land. 
Loving-kindness and truth shall meet together. 
Righteousness and peace shall kiss each other. 

Truth shall spring out of the earth, 
And righteousness shall look down from heaven. 
The Lord shall give every good thing, 
And our land shall again yield its increase. 
Righteousness shall go before Him 
And attend unto the way of His steps. — ^Ps. 85. 
Deliver my soul, Lord, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue. 
— Ps. 120, 2. 



182. THE PEOPHETS HAGGAI AND ZECHAEIAH. 

The prophet Haggai' returned, in all probability, with 
Zerubbabel to Judea. In the second year of the reign of 
Darius (520 C. E.) he presented himself before Zerubbabel 
and Joshua the high-priest, and stimulated them to resume 
the building of the Temple, interrupted for fourteen years 
by the intrigues of the Samaritans. He commenced his 
work by remonstrating with the people for being so solicitous 
about the completion and adornment of their own houses, 
while they suffered the House of God to remain in an unfin- 
ished state ; he predicts an abundant harvest as their reward ; 
declares that the glory of the latter Temple should greatly 
surpass that of the former. 

In the same time Zechariah,^ son of Berechiah, the head 
of one of the priestly families, preached as a prophet, and 
aided Haggai in the good work of guiding and encouraging 
the feeble remnant of Judah under the many difficulties 
which beset them. Exalting Zerubbabel and Joshua, he made 
them feel all the importance of their high mission, and pre- 
dicted to them a brilliant success. In one of his visions he 
saw Joshua clothed by an angel in the costume of the High- 
priest. The same as Haggai, he founded the most beautiful 
hopes upon Zerubbabel and dreamed a throne for this 
descendant of David. 

Then came the word of the Lord by Haggai, saying : Is it time for you 
to dwell in your wainscotted houses, while this House lieth waste ? Now 
therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts : Consider your ways. Ye have 
sown much, and brought in little; ye have eaten, but have not had 
enough ; ye have drunk, but have not boon full ; ye have clothed you, but 
have not been warm ; and he that worked for Avages worked for wages to 
put them in a bag pierced with holes. Thus saith the Lord of liosts : 
Consider your ways. Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build 

* ^Jn (festive, perhaps bora at the feast of Tabernacles). 
2 rr'IDT whom Jail remembers. 



I 



EZRA. 315 

the house ; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the 
Lord. Ye looked for much, and lo, it came to little; and when ye 
brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why ? saith the Lord of hosts. 
Beciuse of My House that is waste, and ye run every man to his own 
house. Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth 
is stayed from her fruit. And I called for a drought upon the land, and 
upon the mountains, and upon the com, and upon the new wine, and 
upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and ujjon 
men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labor of the hands. 

In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, came 
the word of the Lord by the prophet Haggai, saying : Speak now 
to Zerubbabel the son oF Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the 
son of Josedech, the high-priest, and to the residue of the people, saying : 
Who is left among you that saw this House in her first glory 1 and how 
do ye see it now 1 is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing? 
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabal ! saith the Lord ; and be strong, O 
Joshua, son of Josedech, the high-priest ! and be strong, all ye people of 
the land ! saith the Lord, and work : for I am with you, saith the Lord 
of hosts : according to the word that I covenanted with you when ye 
came out of Egypt, so My spirit remaineth among you : fear ye not. 
For thus saith the Lord of hosts : Yet once, it is a little while, and I will 
shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land ; and I 
will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come : and I 
will fill this House with glory, saith the Lord of hosts. The silver is 
Mine, and the gold is Mine, saith the Lord of hosts. The glory of this 
latter House shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts : 
and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts. 

In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of 
the Lord to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the 
prophet, saying : The Lord has been sore displeased with your 
fathers. Therefore say thou to them : Thus saith the Lord of hosts : 
Turn ye to Me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will turn to you, saith the 
Lord of hosts. Be ye not as ^our fathers, to whom the former prophets 
have cried, sa}ang : Thus saith the Lord of hosts : Turn ye now from 
your evil ways, and from your evil doings ; but they did not hear, nor 
hearken unto me, saith the Lord. Your fathers, where are they 1 and the 
prophets, do they live for ever ? But My words and My statutes, which I 
commanded My servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your 
fathers 1 and they returned and said : Like as the Lord of hosts thought 
to do to us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so has 
He dealt with us. 

I lifted up my eyes again, and looked, and behold a man with a meas- 
uring line in his hand. Then said I : Whither goest thou 1 And he 
said to me : To measure Jerusalem, to see what is the breadth thereof, 
and what is the length thereof And, behold, the angel that talked with 
me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him. And said to 
him : Eun, speak to this young man, saying : Jerusalem shall be inhab- 
ited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein. 
For I, saith the Lord, will be to her a waU of fire round about, and will 
be the glory in the mJdst of her. Ho, ho, come forth, and flee from the 
land of the north, saith the Lord ; for I have spread you abroad as the 
four winds of the heaven, saith the Lord. Deliver thyself, O Zion ! that 
dwellest with the daughter of Babylon. For thus saith the Lord of 
hosts : After the glory hath He sent me to the nations which spoiled you : 
for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of His eye. For, behold, I 
will shake My hand upon them, and they shall be a spoil to their serv- 
ants : and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me. Sing and 
rejoice, O daughter of Zion ! for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst 



316 EZRA. 

of thee, saith the Lord. And many nations shall be joined to the Lord 
on that day, and shall be My people : and I will dwell in the midst of 
thee, and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to thee. 
And the Lord shall inherit Judah His portion in the holy land, and shall 
choose Jerusalem again. Be silent, all flesh! before the Lord : for He 
is raised up out of his holy habitation. For thus saith the Lord of hosts : 
As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked Me to wrath, 
saith the Lord of hosts, and I repented not : so again have I thought in 
these days to do well to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah : fear ye 
not. These are the things that ye shall do : Speak ye every man the 
truth to his neighbor ; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your 
gates ; and let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neigh- 
bor ; and love no false oath : for all these are things that I hate, saith the 
Lord. 



183. THE TEMPLE IS FINISHED IN THE REIGN 
OF DARIUS. THE FEAST OF THE DEDI- 
CATION. THE PASSOVER. 

(Ezra, 6.) 

"When these two prophets thus stirred up the people, and 
infused zeal into it, then rose up Zerubbabel and Joshua, and 
recommenced to build the house of God. 

At that time came to them Tatnai, governor on the other 
side of the river, and Shethar-boznai, and their companions, 
and said thus to them: "Who has commanded you to build 
this house, and to make up this wall? And they sent a letter 
to the king, wherein was written thus: Unto Darius the king, 
all peace! Be it known to the king, that we went into the 
province of Judea, to the House of the great God. which is 
built with great stones, and timber is laid in the walls ; this 
work goeth fast on, and prospers in their hands. Then asked 
we the elders: Who commanded you to build this House, 
and to make up these walls? And thus they returned us 
answer, saying: We are the servants of the God of heaven 
and earth, and build the House that was built these many 
years ago, which a great king of Israel built and set up. 
But after that our fathers had prpvoked the God of heaven to 
wrath. He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the 
king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this House, 
and carried the people away into Babylon. But in the first 
year of his reign over Babylon, Cyrus made a decree to build 
this House of God. And the vessels also of gold and silver, 
which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the temple that was in 
Jerusalem, did Cyrus the king deliver to one, whose name 
was Slieshbazzar, whom he had made governor. Then came 
the same Sheshbazzar, and laid the foundation of the House 
of God, and since that time even until now has it been in 



EZEA. 317 

building, and yet it is not finished. Now therefore, if it 
seem good to the king, let there be search made in the king's 
treasure-house, which is there at Babylon, whether it be so, 
that a decree was made of Cyrus the king to build this House 
of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send his pleasure to 
us concerning this matter. 

Then Darius the king commanded, and search was made 
in the house of the rolls, and there was found in the palace 
at Achmetha, in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein 
was a record thus written: In the first year of Cyrus the 
king, the same Cyrus the king made a decree concerning the 
House of God at Jerusalem: Let the House of the Lord, the 
place where they offered sacrifices, be built again; let the 
foundations be strongly laid, and let the expenses be given 
out of the king's treasury. And also let the golden and 
silver vessels which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the Temple 
at Jerusalem, be restored, and brought again to the Temple 
that shall be l3uilt there. As soon as King Darius found this 
decree, he sent word to the Samaritans to let the men of 
Judah build the House of the Lord, and not to disturb them. 
The king wrote further: Moreover, I make a decree, that of 
the king's goods, even of the tribute beyond the river, forth- 
with expenses be given to the Jews, so that they be not hin- 
dered in finishing the work. And that which they have need 
of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs, for the burnt- 
offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, 
according to the appointment of the priests at Jerusalem, let 
it be given them day by day without fail. Also I have made 
a decree, that whoever shall alter this word, let timber be 
pulled down from his house, and a gallows shall be built of 
it, and he shall be hung thereon; and his house destroyed, 
and never rebuilt. And the God who has caused His name 
to dwell there destroy all kings and people that shall put to 
their hand to alter and to destroy this House of God which 
is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made a decree; let it be 
done with speed. 

And the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered 
according to the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and 
Zechariah the son of Iddo. They built and finished the 
House. On the third day of the month Adar, which was in 
the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king,^ the children 
of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the 
children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this House 
of God with joy, and offered at the dedication of this House 
of God a hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred 

1 Al)out four years after the decree. 



318 EZRA. 

lambs; and for a sin-offering for all Israel, twelve he-goats, 
according to the number of the tribes of Israel.^ And they 
set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their 
courses, for the service of God; as it is written in the book 
of Moses. Then they kept the passover upon the fourteenth 
day of the first month with joy: for the Lord had made them 
joyful, and turned the heart of . the king to them, to 
strengthen their hands in the work of the house of C'^''\ the 
God of Israel. 

Praise ye the Lord from the heavens. 

Praise ye Him in the heights. 

Praise ye Him, all His angels, 

Praise ye Him, all His host. 

Praise ye Him, sun and moon, 

Praise Him all ye stars of light. ' 

Praise Him ye heavens of heavens, 

And ye waters that are above the heavens. 

Let them praise the Name of the Lord, 

Por He commanded and they were created. 

And He set them there for ever and ever ; 

He gave a law, and not one transgresseth it. 

Praise ye the Lord from the earth. 
Sea-monsters and all deeps ; 
Pire and hail, snow and vapor, 
Stormy wind fulfilling His word; 
Ye mountains and all hills, 
Fruit-trees and all cedars ; 
Ye wild beasts and all cattle. 
Creeping things and winged birds ; 
Kings of the earth and all tribes, 
Princes and all judges of the earth; 
Young men and also maidens, 
Old men together with youths — 
Let them praise the Name of the Lord, 
Por His Name his highly exalted. He alone. 
His glory is above earth and heaven, ; 
And He hath raised a horn for His people, 
For a praise for all His saints. 

Per the children of Israel, for the people near unto Him. 
Hallelujah.— Ps. 148. 

184. A COLONY LED BY EZRA TO JERUSALEM. 
COMMISSION OF ARTAXERXES TO HIM. 

(Ezra, 7.) 

Now after these things, in the reign of Artaxerxes, king of 
Persia, Ezra,^ a descendant of Seraiah, a descendant of Aaron, 

1 According to the LXX., the 146th. 147th. and 14Sth psahus were composed by 
the prophet Haggai, and probably used on this occasion. 

2 If, with most commentators, Artaxerxes is taken for Longimanus, the interval 
from the sixth year of Darins Hvstaspis to the seventh of Longunanus will be one 
of fifty-seven years. Hence commentators regard the Book ol Ezra ae composed 
of two distinct "parts," 



EZRA. 319 

left Babylon to go up to Jerusalem. He was a ready scribe ^ 
in the law of Moses, and the king granted him all his request, 
according to the sustaining help of God. And there went 
up some of the children of Israel, and of the priests, and 
the Levites, and the singers, and the porters, and the Nethin- 
ims, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Artaxerxes the 
king. And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month of the 
same year. For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law 
of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel Law and 
right. Now this is the copy of the letter that the king 
Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe, even a scribe 
of the words of the commandments of the Lord, and of his 
statutes to Israel. Artaxerxes, king of kings, ^ Unto Ezra 
the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect 
'peace, and so forth: I make a decree, that all those of the 
people of Israel, and of their priests and Levites, in my 
realm, who are minded of their own free will to go up to 
Jerusalem, go with thee. Forasmuch as thou art sent of the 
king, and of his seven counsellors, to inquire, righteously 
and justly, concerning Judah and Jerusalem, according to the 
law of thy God which is in thy hand; and to carry the silver 
and gold, which the king and his counsellors have freely 
offered to the God of Israel, whose Habitation is in Jerusa- 
lem, and all the silver and gold that thou canst obtain from 
the free-will offerings of my subjects. That thou mayest buy 
speedily with this money bullocks, rams, lambs, with their 
meat-offerings and their drink-offerings, and whatsoever shall 
seem good to thee, and to thy brethren, after the will of your 
God. The vessels also that are given thee for the service of 
the House of thy God, those deliver thou before the God of 
Jerusalem. And whatsoever more shall be needful for the 
House of thy God, bestow it out of the king's treasure-house. 
And I, even I, Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all 
the treasurers who are beyond the river, that whatsoever Ezra 
the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall 
require of you, it be done speedily, unto a hundred talents of 
silver, and to a hundred measures of wheat, and to a hundred 
baths of wine, and to a hundred baths of oil, and salt with- 
out prescribing how much. Whatsoever is commanded by 
the God of heaven, let it be diligently done for the House of 
the God of heaven: for why should there be wrath against 
the realm of the king and his sons ? Also we certify you, 
that touching any of the priests and Levites, singers, porters, 
Nethinims, or servants of this House of God, it shall not be 

1 The '* scribes " of this time, and of later Jewish history, were students, inter- 
preters, and copiers of the Law. 

2 The title "King of Kings," is assumed by almost all the Persian monarchs in 
their inscriptions. 



320 EZRA. 

lawful to impose toll, tribute, or custom upon them. And 
thou, Ezra, after the wisdom of thy God, that thou possessest, 
set magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people 
that are beyond the river, all such as know the laws of thy 
God; and teach ye them who know them not. And whoso- 
ever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, 
let judgment be executed speedily upon him, whether it be 
to death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to 
imprisonment. 

Blessed^ be the Lord God of our fathers, who has put such 
a thing as this in the king's heart, to beautify the House of 
the Lord which is in Jerusalem : and has extended mercy to 
me before the king, and his counsellors, and before all the 
king's mighty princes. And I was strengthened as the hand 
of the Lord my God was upon me, and I gathered together 
out of Israel chief men to go up with me. 

This book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth ; hut thou 
shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do 
according to all that is written therein, — Josh. 1, 8. 



185 EZRA'S ACCOUNT ABOUT HIS EXPEDITIOISr. 
DISMISSION OF THE HEATHEN WOMEN. 

(Ezra, 8-10.) 

About 1500 men, the women and children not included, 
joined to Ezra on his expedition. Also a few Levites and 
priests came at his request with him. I gathered them 
together, thus he relates, to the river that runs to Ahava^ * 
and there abode we in tents three days. Then I proclaimed 
a fast there, to seek of our God a right way for us, and for 
our little ones, and for all our substance. For I was ashamed 
to require of the king a band of soldiers and horsemen to 
help us against the enemy ^ in the way: because we had 
spoken to the king, saying: The hand of our God is upon all 
them for good that seek Him; but His power and His wrath 
is against all them that forsake Him. So we fasted and 
besought our God for this: and He was entreated of us. 
Having arrived safely at Jerusalem, and abode there three 
days, the silver and the gold and the vessels and all the other 
offerings which had been made by the king, and his nobles, 
and the rest of the people of Israel that stayed behind were 
delivered up to the Temple, and solemn sacrifices were made 

' The king's decree is in the Chaldee language, but heuceforth the language con- 
tinues to be Hebrew till the close of the book. 

2 Afiava, the name of a town and a river. The modern name of the place is Tlit, 
at a distance of about 80 miles from Babylon, towards the north-west. 

3 Perhaps robber-tribes, Arab or Syrian. 



EZRA. 321 

to express their gratitude to God for their safe and prosper- 
ous journey. 

Now when these things were done, the princes came to 
me, saying: The people of Israel, and the priests, and the 
Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of 
the lands, in respect of their abominations. For they have 
taken of their daughters for themselves, and for their sons ; 
yea, the hand of the princes and rulers has been chief in this 
trespass. And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment 
and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of 
my beard, and sat down stunned. And at the evening sac- 
rifice I arose up from my attitude of woe, having rent my 
garment and my mantle,^ I fell upon my knees, and spread 
out my hands to the Lord my God. 

And said : O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to 
Thee, my God : for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our 
traspass is grown up unto the heavens. Since the days of our fathers 
have we been in a great trespass unto this day ; and for our iniquiiies 
have we, our kings, and our priests, been dehvered into the hand of the 
kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, and to a spoil, and to con- 
fusion of face, as it is this day. And now "^for a little space grace hath 
been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, 
and to give us a nail in His holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, 
and give us a little reviving in our bondage. For we were bondmen ; yet 
our God hath not forsaken us in our Bondage, but hath extended mercy 
unto us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give us a reviving, to set up 
the House of our God, and to repair the desolations thereof, and to give 
us a wall in Judah and in Jerusalem. And now, our God, what shall 
we say after this ? for we have forsaken Thy commandments, which Thou 
hast commanded by Thy ser-v^mts the prophets, saying : The land unto 
which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land with the filthiness of the 
people of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from 
one end to another with their uncleanness. Now therefore give not your 
daughters unto their sons, neither take their daughters unto your sons, 
that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an 
inheritance to your children for ever. And. after all that has come upon us 
for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that Thou our God hast 
punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliv- 
erance as this ; should we again break Thy commandments, and join in 
affinity with the people of these abominations 1 wouldsc not Thou be 
angry with us till Thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no 
remnant nor escaping 1 O Lord God of Israel, Thou art righteous : for 
we remain yet escaped, as it is this day : behold, we are before Thee in our 
trespasses ; for we cannot stand before Thee because of this. 

Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, 
weeping and prostrating himself in front of the House of 
God, there assembled to him out of Israel a very great con- 
gregation of men and women and children: for the people 
wept very sore. And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, one of 
the sons of Elam, said to Ezra: We have trespassed against 
our God, and have taken strange wives of the people of the 

^ A second time. This took place in front of the Temple in the sight of all the 
people. 



322 EZRA. 

land : yet now there is hope in Israel concerning this thing. 
Now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put 
away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to 
the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the 
commandment of our God; and let it be done according to 
the law.^ Arise! for this matter belongeth to thee: we also 
will be with thee: be of good courage, and do it. Then 
arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all 
Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word. 
And they swore. And they made proclamation throughout 
Judah and Jerusalem to all the children of the captivity, 
that they should gather themselves together to Jerusalem; 
and that whosoever would not come within three days, 
according to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all 
his substance should be forfeited, and himself separated^ 
from the congregation of those that had been carried away. 
Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered them- 
selves together to Jerusalem within three days. It was the 
ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month; and all the 
people sat in the court of the House of God, trembling 
because of this matter, and for the great rain. And Ezra 
the priest stood up, and said to them: Ye have transgressed, 
and have taken strange wives to increase the trespass of 
Israel. Now therefore make confession to the Lord God of 
your fathers, and do His pleasure: and separate yourselves 
from the people of the land, and from the strange wives. 
Then all the congregation answered and said with a loud 
voice: As thou hast said so must we do. But the people are 
many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to 
remain out of doors, neither is this a work of one day or 
two; for we are many that have transgressed in this thing. 
Let now our rulers of all the congregation remain at Jeru- 
salem as commissioners, inquire into this matter, and cause 
every man to do according to the law herein. And the chil- 
dren of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain 
chief of the fathers, were selected. And they sat down the 
first day of the tenth month to examine hereinto, and made 
an end by the first day of the first month; so that in three 
months time a thorough reformation was made of this trans- 
gression. All the men that had taken strange wives 
dismissed them. 

God lays up safety for the righteous ; He is a shield to those that walk 
upriglitly. — rrov. 2, 7. 

A broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise. — Ps. 51, 
19. 

' Let a formal "bill of divorcement" be given to each foreign wife, whereby she 
will be free to wed another hnsband. 
^l.e. excommunicated. 



I 



THE TWO 

BOOKS OF CHRONICLES, 



186. GENERAL CHARACTER OF THE BOOK. 

According to the assertions of Jewish Rabbis in the Tal- 
mud/ the Books of the Chronicles are said to owe their 
origin to Ezra. 

They are called in the Hebrew Bible ^^the words of days^^^ ^ 
or ^^ journals,''^ because they contain an abstract, in the order 
of time, of the whole of the sacred history, starting from 
the creation and continuing till after the return of the Jews 
from Babylon — 3,468 years. As they relate many events 
which were omitted in the Books of Samuel and the Kings, 
and add a variety of circumstances not mentioned anywhere 
else, they serve to complete the histories before written.^ 

In all probability the Chronicles were written shortly after 
the return from captivity, especially for the purpose of fixing 
the genealogies of the returned exiles, and thus facilitating 
the reestablishm.ent of religious worship by detailing the 
pedigrees, the functions, and the order of the priests and 
Levites. Their object was also to describe the original 
apportionment of lands, that the respective families might be 
confirmed in their ancient inheritances. These pedigrees 
were, no doubt, extracted from public registers. In the 
composition of the books of Chronicles lost writings also 
were used, which are named by the author. The kingdom 
of the ten tribes is hardly mentioned by the author, because 
their country had been occupied by an envious and hostile 
population, and those that returned from captivity belonged 
almost exclusively, with the exception of the Levites and 
priests, to the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. It is consid- 
ered as very probable that the Books of Chronicles and Ezra 
were originally one work, proceeding from the same author.'* 

iBaba Bathra, cap. I., fol. 15. 

3 Hence the Greek translators have called them TlapaX^inofjieva^ Paraleipomena, 
things omitted; i. e., supplements, remains of other historical works. 

■* Hence the last two verses in 2 Chron. 36, which already stood at the he^nning 
of Ezra, were repeated, to remind the reader, by the abrupt termination, tnat the 
continuation of the narrative was to be found elsewhere,— Ewald's Geschichte, 
I., pp. 253, 254. 



^ 



THE 

BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. 



187. NEHEMIAH, CUP-BEARER TO ARTAXERXES, 
REBUILDS THE WALLS OF JERUSALEM. 

(Nehemiah, 1-4.) 

Nehemiah,' the son of Hachaliah (440), succeeded Ezra in 
the government of Judali and Jerusalem. He was one of 
the cup-bearers of King Artaxerxes (Longimanus), which 
was a place of great honor and advantage in the Persian 
court. However, neither the honor and advantage of this 
place, nor the long settlement of his family out of Palestine, 
could make him forget his love for this country of his fathers. 
And, therefore, when he had heard of the ill-state of Jeru- 
salem and the desolation of the Holy Land, he resolved to 
help. He himself thus relates it: In the month Chisleu,*^ in 
the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, I was in Shushan the 
palace, and Hanani, one of my brothers, came, he and certain 
men of Judah; I asked them concerning Jerusalem and con- 
cerning the Jews who were left there of the captivity. And 
they said: The remnant that are left of the captivity there 
are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem 
also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with 
fire. When I heard these words, I sat down and wept, and 
mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God 
of heaven, and said: 

I beseech Thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, who 
keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love Him and observe His com- 
mandments : let Thy ear now be attentive, and Thy eyes open, that Thou 
mayest hear the prayer of Thy servant, which I pray before Thee now, 
day and night, for the children of Israel, Thy servants, and confess the 
sins of the chiUlrcn of Israel which we have sinned against Thee : both I 
and my father's house have sinned. We have dealt very corruptly against 
Thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the 

^n'TDnj (Jah is consolation), surnamed nnK/"in Tirshatha; i. e. govcraor, 
prefect. 

5 The ninth month, corresponding to the end of November and beginning of 
December. 



NEHEMIAH. 325 

judgments, which Thou commandedst Thy servant Moses. Eemember, I 
beseech Thee, the Avord that Thou commandedst Thy servant Moses, say- 
ing : If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations ; but 
if ye turn to Me, and keep My commandments, and do them ; though there 
were of you cast out to the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will 1 gather 
them from thence, and will bring them to the place that I have chosen to 
set My Name there. Now these are Thy servants and Thy people, whom 
Thou hast redeemed by Thy great power, and by Thy strong hand. 
Lord, I beseech Thee, let now Thy ear be attentive to the prayer of Thy 
servant : and prosper, I pray Thee, Thy servant this day, and grant him 
mercy in the sight of this man( the King Artaxerxes). 

And it came to pass in the month Nisan,^ in the twentieth 
year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and 
I took up the wine, and gave it to the king. Now I had , 
never before been sad in his presence. Therefore the king 
said to me: Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not 
sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was 
very sore afraid, and said to the king: Let the king live for 
ever! Why should not my countenance be sad, when the 
city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and the 
gates thereof are consumed with fire? Then the king said 
to me: For what dost thou make request ? So I prayed to 
the God of heaven.^ And I said to the king: If it please 
the king, and if thy servant have found favor in thy sight, 
that thou wouldst send me to Judah, to the city of my 
fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it. And the king said 
to me (the queen also sitting by him) : For how long shall 
thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So I set him a 
time, and it pleased the king to send me. Moreover, I said 
to the king: If it please the king, let letters be given me to 
the governors beyond the river Euphrates, that thay may 
convey me over till I come into Judah ; and a letter to Asaph, 
the keeper of the king's park, that he may give me as much 
timber out of them as should be needed for the finishing of the 
work. And the king granted me, according to the good 
hand of my God upon me, and he sent a guard of horse with 
me under the command of some captains of his army, to 
conduct me in safety to my government. So I came to 
Jerusalem, and when I was there three days, I arose in the 
night, I and some few men with me; we went out by night 
and viewed the walls of Jerusalem, which were broken down, 
and the gates thereof which were consumed with fire. And 
the rulers knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither 
had I as yet told it to any one. In the morning I said to 
the rulers: You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusa- 

^ Nisan was the name given by the Persian Jews to the month previously called 
" Abib," the first mouth of the Jewish year ; it fell four months after Chisleu. 
* Mentally and momentarily, before answering the king. 



326 NEHEMIAH/ 

lem lietli waste, and the gates thereof are burned with jfire: 
come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we may 
not be exposed to the scorn and insult of the enemy, nor 
liable to any sudden attack. Then I told them of the hand 
of my God which was good upon me; as also the king's 
words that he had spoken to me. And they said: Let us 
rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands, and 
encouraged one another in this good work. 

But when Sanballat^ the Horonite, and other adversaries 
heard it, they laughed us to scorn, and despised us, and said : 
"What is this thing that ye do? Will ye rebel against the 
king? Then answered I them, and said: The God of heaven 
will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and 
build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in 
Jerusalem. 

But when Sanballat, and the Arabians, and the Ammon- 
ites heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and 
that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very 
wroth, and conspired all of them together to come and to fight 
against Jerusalem, and to hinder it. Nevertheless we made 
our prayer to our God, and set a watch over against them day 
and night. I remained in the lower places behind the wall, 
and on the higher places, I set the people after their families 
with their swords, their spears, and their bows, assigning to 
each of them the quarter where they were to work. And I 
looked, and rose up, and said to the nobles, and to the rulers, 
and to the rest of the people: Be not afraid of them; remem- 
ber the Lord, who is great and terrible, and fight for your 
brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your 
houses! And it came to pass when our enemies heard that 
their treacherous tricks and contrivances were known ^ to us, 
they used open force, so that from that time forth the half 
of the population wrought in the work, and the other half 
of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and 
the coats of mail; and the rulers were behind the laborers 
at the wall, directing and encouraging them. All those who 
built at the wall, and all those who bore burdens, worked 
with one hand, and held a weapon with the other, or at least 
had it close at hand, or girded about them. The trumpeter 
who was to sound in case of an alarm was by me. And I said 
to the nobles, and to the rest of the people : The work is great, 
and we are separated upon the wall one far from another. In 

» Leader of the Samaritans. 

2 Their motive was not only the ancient bitter onmity which they hore to the 
Jewish nation, because of the different manners aiul ditfeient roliixion j: which they 
were of, but most especially at this time, because ot their lands: for (hirin^- the 
time that the Jews were in captivity, these nations haviufj seized their lauds, 
were forced to restore them on their return.— Josophus, Aut. Lib. 11, c. 4. 



NEHEMIAH. 327 

what place therefore you hear the sound of the trumpet, 
resort ye thither to us; our God shall fight for us. So we 
labored in the work from the rising of the morning till the 
stars appeared. Likewise said I to the people: Let all take 
their rest in Jerusalem, that all may be at hand ready to 
guard the work in case of a night attack. So neither I, nor 
my brethren, nor the men of the guard put oS our clothes, 
but in order to send them to the washing. At last, in the 
incredible short time of fifty-two days, the wall around the 
city stood completed. And when they had finished the walls 
and set up the gates, a public dedication of them was cele- 
brated with great solemnity by the priests, the Levites, and 
all the people. 

Acknowledge the Lord in all thy ways, and He will direct thy paths. — 
Prov. 3, 6. 

Sanctify the Lord of Hosts Himself, and kt Him he your fear, and let 
Him be your dread. — Isa. 8, 13. 

For the Lord God will help me; therefore have I set my face like a 
flint, and 1 kuow that I shall not be ashamed. — Isa. 50, 7. 



188. NEHEMIAH EEDEESSES THE GRIEVANCE 

OF THE PEOPLE, AND SHOWS A VERY 

GENEROUS SPIRIT. 

(Nehemiah, 5.) 

And there was a great cry of the people and of their 
wives against their richer brethren, the Jews. For there were 
some who said: We, our sons and our daughters, are many, and 
we must buy corn, that we may eat and live. Some were who 
said: We have mortgaged our lands, vineyards, and houses, 
that we might get corn in the famine. There were also others 
who said: We have borrowed money for the king's tribute, 
and that upon our lands and vineyards. Yet now our flesh is 
as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children ; 
and, lo, we are forced to bring into bondage our sons and 
our daughters to be servants, neither is it in our power to 
redeem them ; for other men have our lands and vineyards. 
1 was very angry — thus Nehemiah relates — when I heard 
their cry and these words, and I rebuked the nobles, and the 
rulers, and said to them : Ye lend upon pledge, every one, to 
his brother ! Then I set a great assembly against them, and 
said to them: We after our ability have redeemed our 
brethren the Jews, who were sold to the heathen; and will 
you cause your brethren to be sold ? or shall they be sold to 
us ? Then held they their peace, and found nothing to an- 
swer. But I went on saying: It is not good what you do: 



328 NEHEMIAH. 

ought ye not to walk in the fear of our G-od, because of the 
opportunity to reproach us which your misconduct gives our 
enemies ? 1 likewise, and my brethren, and my^ servants, 
have lent our poorer brethren corn and money. I pray you 
let us leave off this pledge-taking. Kestore, I pray you, to 
them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their olive- 
yards, and their houses, also the part of the money, and of 
the corn, the wine, and the oil that you lent to them. Then 
said they: "We will restore them, and will require nothing of 
them; so will we do as thou sayest. Then I called the priests 
as witnesses, and took an oath of the rich men, that they 
should do according to this promise. Also I shook my lap,^ 
and said: So God shake out every man from his house, and 
from his labor, who performeth not this promise, and thus let 
him be shaken out, and emptied. And all the congregation 
said: Amen ! and praised the Lord. And the people did 
according to this promise. Moreover from the time that 1 
was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, 
from the twentieth year even to the two and thirtieth year 
of Artaxerxes the king, that is, twelve years, I and my 
brethren have not, like other Persian governors, lived at the 
expense of the people under my government. Moreover 
there were at my table a hundred and fifty of the Jews and 
rulers, beside those who came to us from among the heathen 
that are about us. Think upon me, my God, for good, 
according to all that 1 have done for this people. 

He who despises his neighbor sins, but happj is he who has mercy on 
the poor. — Prov. 14, 21. 



189. EZRA READS THE LAW BEFORE THE 

PEOPLE— OBSERVATION OF THE FEAST 

OF TABERNACLES— DAY OF FASTING- 

AND CONFESSION. 

(Nehemiah, 8.) 

Ezra ^ having completed his edition of the Law of God, 
and written it out fairly and correctly in the Chaldean charac- 
ters,^ did this year, on the feast of trumpets," (Numb. 21, 1) 
publicly read it to the people at Jerusalem. AH the people 

1 A fold in the bosom of the dress, capable of serving as a pocket. 

2 Ezra seems to have returned to Babylon soon after effecting the reforms men- 
tioned above, and did not revisit Jerusalem till about the tiiue when the walls 
were completed. 

3 The Chaklee character having now grown wholly into use among the people 
after the Babylonish captivity,' Ezra changed the old Hebrew character lor it, 
which has since that time been retained only by the Samaritans. 

4 This feast was celebrated on the first of Tisri, the seventh month of the Jews' 
ecclesiastical year, and the llrst of their civil year. Their coming out of Egypt 



NEHEMIAH. 329 

were gathered together as one man into the court that was 
before the water gate. And Ezra the priest brought the law 
before the congregation both of men and women, and all that 
could hear with understanding. He stood upon a pulpit of 
wood, which they had made for the purpose ; and he read in 
the Book of the Law from the morning until midday; and the 
ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. 
When Ezra opened the Book in the sight of all the people, 
all the people stood up, and Ezra blessed the Lord, the great 
God. And all the people answered Amen! Amen! with lift- 
ing up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and wor- 
shipped the Lord with their faces to the ground. The Le- 
vites caused the people to understand the Law. They read 
in the Book distinctly, and gave the sense, ^ and the people 
understood what was read. And Nehemiah, who is the Tir- 
shatha, and Ezra the priest, the scribe, and the Levites, who 
taught the people, said to all the people: This day is holy to 
the Lord your G-od; mourn not, nor weep. For all the 
people wept when they heard the words of the law.^ 

Then he said to them: Go your way, eat the fat, and drink 
the sweet, and send portions to them for whom nothing is 
prepared ; for this day is holy to our Lord : neither be ye 
sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength. So the 
Levites stilled all the people, saying: Hold your peace, for 
the day is holy; neither be ye grieved. And all the people 
went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, 
and to make great mirth, because they had felt the reason- 
ableness of the words addressed to them by Nehemiah and 
Ezra. And on the second day were gathered together the 
chief of the fathers of all the people, the priests, and the 
Levites, to Ezra the scribe, even to hear and consider the 
words of the Law. And they found written in the Law which 
the Lord had commanded by Moses, that the children of 
Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh 
month. It was, therefore, published and proclaimed in all 
the cities, and in Jerusalem, saying: Go forth to the mount, 
and fetch ohve branches, and branches of the wild olive, and 

havino; been in the month of Nisan (Ex. 12. 2), from that time the beginning t)f the 
year, in all ecclesiastical matters, was reckoned among them from the beginning 
of that month (which happened about the time of vernal equinox) ; but in all civil 
matters, as in contracts, bargains, and such like, they still continued to go by the 
old form, and began their year from the first of Tisri (which happened about the 
time of the autumnal equinox), as all other nations of the East then did. and, 
therefore, it being reckoned their new-year's day, they celebrated it with a festi- 
val. And this festival being solemnized by the sounding of trumpets, thereby to 
proclaim and give notice to all of the beginning of the new year, it has from hence 
been called the feast of trumpets. 

1 Either by rendering the Hebrew into the Aramaic dialect, or perhaps simply 
by explaining obscure words or passages. 

2 It brought vividly before them their own sins of omission and commission. 



330 NEHEMIAH. 

myrtle brandies, and palm branches, and branches of tbick 
trees, to make booths, as it is written. So the people went 
forth, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof 
of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the 
House of God, and in the square of the water-gate, and in 
the street of the gate of Ephraim. Since the days of Joshua, 
the son of Nun, to that day had been no such celebration as 
this. And there was very great gladness. Also day by day, 
from the first day to the last day, Ezra read in the Book of the 
Law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the 
eighth day was a solemn assembly. Now, iOn the twenty- 
fourth day of this month, the children of Israel were assem- 
bled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them. 
They had separated themselves from all strangers, and stood 
and confessed tl^eir sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. 
They stood up in their place, and engaged in the reading of 
the Law of the Lord their God one fourth part of the day; 
and another fourth part they confessed, and worshipped the 
Lord their God. One part of the Levites prayed and cried, 
and cried with a loud voice unto the Lord their God. Others 
of them said : Stand up ^ and bless the Lord your God for 
ever and ever: and blessed be Thy glorious Name, which is 
exalted above all blessing and praise. 

Thou, even Thou, art Lord alone : Thou hast made heaven,^ the heaven 
of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, 
the seas, and all that is therein, and Thou preservest them all ; and the 
host of heaven worshippeth Thee. Thou art the Lord the God, who didst 
choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and 
gavest him the name of Abraham ; and foundest his heart faithful before 
Thee, and madest a covenant Avith him to give the land of the Canaanites 
to his seed, and hast performed Thy words ; for Thou art righteous : and 
didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by 
the Red Sea ; and showedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all 
his servants, and on all the people of his land : for Thou knewest that 
they dealt proudly against them. So didst Thou get Thee a name, as it 
is this day. And Thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went 
through the midst of the sea on the dry land ; and their persecutors Thou 
threwest into the deeps, as a stone into mighty waters. Thou earnest 
down also upon Mount Sinai, and spokest with them from heaA'en, and 
gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and command- 
ments : and gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and 
broughtest forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and prom- 
isedst them that they should go in to possess the land wliich Thou hadst 
SAVorn to give them. Their children also multipliedst 'lliou as the stars 
of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, concerning which Thou 
hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it. 
Nevertheless, they were disobedient, and rebelled against Thee, and cast 
Thy Law behind their backs, and slew Thy prophets,- who tcstitiod against 

1 The people had knelt to confess and worship God. They were now to take the 
attitude proper for praise. 

2 The murder of Zechariah is mentioned in the Bible (comp. pajje 245"). Tradi- 
tion, however, states that more thau one of the great prophets were murdered, (c. 
g., Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezckicl.) 



NEHEMIAH. 331 

them to turn them to Thee, and they wrought great provocations. There- 
fore Thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies. Nevertheless, 
for Thy great mercies' sake, Thou didst not utterly consume them, nor 
forsake them ; for Thou art a gracious and merciful God. Now therefore, 
our God, the great, the mighty, and the terrible God ! who keepest cove- 
nant and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before Thee, that has 
come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on 
our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all Thy people, since the time 
of the kings of Assyria to this day. Howbeit Thou art just in all that is 
brought upon us ; for Thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly. 
Behold, we are servants this day, and for the land that Thou gavest to 
our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are 
servants in it: and it pays tribute in money and kind to the kings Avhom 
Thou hast set over us because of our sins : also they have dominion over 
our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great 
distress. 

And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and 
write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests, seal to it.^ 
And the rest of the people, and they that had separated 
themselves from the people of the lands to the Law of God, 
clave to their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a curse, 
and into an oath, to walk in God's law, which was given by 
Moses the servant of God, and to observe and do all the 
commandments of the Lord our Lord, and His judgments 
and His statutes. They especially took upon themselves not 
to marry strange women, not to buy any goods of the people 
of the land on the Sabbath day, to leave the seventh year, 
and the exaction of any debt, to charge themselves yearly 
with the third part of a shekel for the service of the house 
of our God; to give tithes to the Levites, and many other 
obligations. 

Gather the people together, men and women, and children, and the 
stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may 
learn, and fear the Lord your God, and observe to do all the words of His 
law.— 5 Mos. 31, 12. 



190. NEHEMIAH GOES TO THE PERSIAN COURT 
AND RETURNS. HIS SECOND REFORMA- 
TION. THE SAMARITANS. 

(Nehem. 13.) 

In the twelfth year of his administration (432) Nehemiah 
returned to the Persian court, and, having tarried there a 
few years in the execution, as it may be supposed, of his 
former office, at length obtained of the king to be sent back 
again to Jerusalem with a new commission. During the 
absence of Nehemiah many things had gone wrong again 

■'It was usua! In the East to authenticate covenants by appending the seals of 
those who were parties to them. 



332 NEHEMIAH. 

in Jerusalem. Notwithstanding the remonstrances of the 
prophet Malachi, who lived about this time, the solemn cove- 
nant was forgotten, and on his return Nehemiah found 
Eliashib, the High-priest himself, who had the oversight of 
the chambers of the house of God, in alliance with the 
enemy of the Jews, Tobiah the Ammonite, and a great 
chamber, which had before been used as a store-room for 
the vessels and tithes of the Sanctuary, assigned for the use 
of this crafty and unscrupulous heathen. Soon he even per- 
ceived there was little need of a store-room for tithes, etc., 
since the portions of the Levites were not given them, and 
the famishing Levites had fled the service of the Temple to 
till their fields. Moreover, he discovered that the Sabbath 
was habitually profaned, the Jews treading their wine-presses 
on that day, and bringing into the city sheaves and all man- 
ner of burdens on their laden beasts, and even holding a 
public market for fish and all manner of ware, brought into 
Jerusalem by certain men of T5rre. And finally, with a 
great outburst of rage and grief, he found that both priests 
and people were contracting marriages with outlandish women 
of Ashdod, and Ammon, and Moab — marriages which were 
themselves a sin and led to sin. Even Manasseh, a grandson 
of the High-priest, had taken as his wife a daughter of their 
other adversary, Sanballat. 

Nehemiah came in with the utmost stretch of his power to 
remedy all these enormities. He commanded Tobiah with 
all his household-stuff to be cast out of the Temple, and the 
chambers occupied by Tobiah to be again cleansed and 
restored to their former use. He charged that the gates of 
Jerusalem should be shut at the sunset of the day before the 
Sabbath and not be opened till after the Sabbath. Then 
Nehemiah forced all who had taken strange wives forthwith 
to part with them, or depart from the country; whereupon 
Manasseh, being unwilling to quit his wife, fled to Samaria, 
where Sanballat, his father-in-law, was governor, and many 
others, who, being in the same state with him, and also of 
the same mind, accompanied him hither, and there settled 
under the protection of Sanballat. 

Sanballat meditated signal revenge; insinuating himself 
into the favor of the Persian King, he obtained from him a 
grant to build on Mount Gerizim, near Samaria, a temple 
like that at Jerusalem, and to make Manasseh, his son-in- 
law, high-priest of it. Sanballat having done so, Samaria 
thenceforth became the common refuge and asylum of the 
refractory Jews, so that if any among them were called to 
an account for having violated the law, they fled to the 



KEHEMIAH. 333 

Samaritans, and there found reception; by which means it 
came to pass that, after some time, the greatest part of that 
people were made up of apostate Jews, and their descend- 
ants. 

The Samaritans had hitherto worshipped the God of Israel only in con- 
junction with their other jrods (comp. page 257), that is, the gods of those 
nations of the East from whence they came ; but the mixing of so many Jews 
among them, soon made a change in their religion. After a temple was 
built among them, in which the daily service was constantly performed 
in the same manner as at Jerusalem, and the Book of the Law of Moses 
was brought to Samaria, and there publicly read to them, they con- 
formed themselves more and more to the laws prescribed in this Book, and 
were even more exact in some particulars than the Jews themselves. 
Thenceforth the Samaritans became a Jewish sect. The principal dif- 
ferences in their religion Avere, that the Samaritans received no other 
scriptures than the five books of Moses, rejecting all the other books 
which are in the Jewish Canon. The second point of difference was, 
that the Samaritans rejected all traditions, and adhered only to the writ- 
ten word itself. The third point was about the place of their worship. 
The Samaritans contended that Mount Gerizim, and not Jerusalem, was 
the right place of worship chosen by God. 

Nehemiah's administration lasted 36 years; he lived to a 
great age. He had shown himself a humble, disinterested, 
pious man, and a clement, generous, zealous, patriotic and 
conscientious governor. 

I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep Thy righteous 
judgments.— Ps. 119, 106. 

Surely he shall not be moved for ever ; the righteous shall be in ever- 
lasting remembrance. — ^Ps. 112, 6. 



191. THE PROPHET MALACHI. 

Malachi * is the last of the prophets. "We know nothing 
of his personal history. The Sacred Chronicles do not so 
much as mention him, although he was a zealous fellow- 
laborer with Nehemiah, and greatly aided that patriotic 
governor in his endeavors to secure a willing and grateful 
obedience to the Divine Law. Malachi appears to have been 
raised up to reprove those corruptions, and reform those 
abuses which had crept into the people during the absence 
of Nehemiah at the court of Persia, and therefore it is most 
probable that in this time and during the second sojourn of 
Nehemiah in Jerusalem (about 420 C. E.) his prophecies 
were delivered. The sins which Malachi denounces were 
the same with which Nehemiah had painfully to contend. 
Malachi makes the Lord Himself denounce the culprits and 
their offences: 

^ 'DnSd (apoc. for TT'DN/D messenger of Jah). 



334 • MALACHI. 

Ye have corrupted the covenant : ye have departed from My statutes, 
and have not kept them : ye have defrauded Me in tithe and offering : ye 
have profaned that which was holy : ye have married the daughter o^ a 
strange god. A son honoreth his father, and a servant his master : if 
then I be a father, where is My honor 1 and if I be a master, where is My 
fear 1 saith the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, that despise My Name. 
And ye say : Wherein have we despised Thy Name 1 Ye offer polluted 
bread upon My altar ; and ye say : Wherein have we polluted thee 1 In 
that ye say : The table of the Lord is contemptible. And if ye offer the 
blind for sacrifice, is it not evil 1 and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it 
not evil 1 offer it now to thy governor ; will he be pleased with thee, or 
accept thy person 1 saith the Lord of hosts. 

On the impiety and profanity of the priests: 

And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. If ye will not 
hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory to My Name, saith 
the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse 
your blessings ; yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it 
to heart. And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment to you, 
that My covenant might be with Levi, saith the Lord of hosts. My cov- 
enant of life and peace was with him, and I gave them (life and peace) 
to him for the fear which he showed for Me, and the awe in which he 
stood of My Name. The law of truth was in his mouth, and no iniquity 
was found in his lips : he walked with Me in peace and integrity, and 
brought back many from guilt. For the priest's lips should preserve 
knowledge, and men seek the law at his mouth : because he is the mes- 
senger of the Lord of hosts. But ye have departed out of the way ; ye 
have caused many to stumble at the Law ; ye have corrupted the covenant 
of Levi, saith the Lord of hosts. Therefore have I also made you con- 
temptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept 
My ways, but have been partial in the Law. 

In defiance of the Law of Moses, they had treacherously 
and wrongfully divorced their Hehrew wives, that they 
might take to themselves consorts from the idolatrous daugh- 
ters of Moab and Philistia. 

Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? 
Why, then, are we treacherous one to another, profaning the 
COVENANT OF OUR FATHERS? Judah has dealt treacherously, and an 
abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem ; for Judah has pro- 
faned the holiness of the Lord which He loved, and has married the 
daughter of a strange god. The Lord will cut off the man that doeth 
this, the master and the scholar, out of the tabernacles of Jacob, and him 
that offers an offering to the Lord of hosts. And this have ye done 
again, covering the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping, and with 
crying out, insomuch that He regardeth not the offering any more, or re- 
ceiveth it with good will at your hand. Yet ye say : Wherefore ? 
Because the Lord has been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, 
against whom thou hast dealt treacherously : yet is she thy companion 
and the wife of thy covenant. 

On the day of the Lord: 

Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before 
Me : and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, 
even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in : behold, he shall 
come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? 
«nd who shall stand when he appeareth ? for he is like ii refiner's fire, and 
like fuller's soap. And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver : and 



1 



MALACHI. 335 

he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that 
they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then shall 
the offering of, Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant to the Lord,' as in the 
days of olH, and as in former years. And I will come near to you to 
judgment : and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against 
the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress 
the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn 
aside the stranger from his right, and fear not Me, saith the Lord of hosts. 
For I am the Lord, I change not ; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not con- 
sumed. Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from My 
ordinances, and have not kept them. Keturn to Me, and I will return to 
you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said : Wherein shall we return ? 
Will a man rob God ? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say : Wherein 
have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a 
curse : for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the 
tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house, and 
prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you 
,the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not 
be room enough to receive it. 

The promise of blessing to them that fear God: 

Your words have been stout against Me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say: 
What have we spoken so much against Thee ? Ye have said : It is vain to 
serve God : and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and 
that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts ? And now we 
call the proud happy ; yea, they that work wickedness are set up ; yea, 
they that tempt God are even delivered. Then they that feared the Lord 
spoke often one with another : and the Lord hearkened, and heard, and a 
book of remembrance was kept before Him for those that feared the 
Lord, and that thought on His Name. And they shall be Mine, saith 
the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels ; and I will 
spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall 
ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him 
that serveth God and him that serveth Him not. To you that fear My 
Name, shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings ; 
and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall 
tread down the wicked ; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your 
feet on the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts. Remember 
YE THE Law of Moses Mt servant, which I commanded to him in 

HOREB FOR ALL ISRAEL, WITH THE STATUTES AND JUDGMENTS. 



THE BOOK OF JOB 



192. JOB'S TRIALS. 

(Job, 1-2.) 

In the land of Uz i lived a man whose name was Job.^ He was an 
upright and good man, fearing God and departing from evil. He had 
seven sons and three daughters. His s.ubstance was seven thousand sheep, 
three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred she-asses, 
and a great number of servants ; so that he was the most wealthy of all 
the inhabitants of the East. 

Now it was the custom of his sons to make a feast in their houses, each 
on his day, and to send and invite their three sisters to eat and to drink 
with them. And when the days of their feasting had gone round. Job 
used to send for them and sanctify them, and to rise up early in the morn- 
ing and offer burnt-offerings according to the number of them all ; for 
Job said : It may be that my sons have sinned, and have renounced God 
in their hearts. Thus did Job continually. 

Now on a certain day the sons of God came to present themselves 
before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. And the Lord said 
to Satan : Whence comest thou ? Then Satan answered the Lord, and 
said : From wandering over the earth, and walking up and down in it. 
And the Lord said to Satan : Hast thou observed My sen-^ant Job, that 
there is none like him in the earth, an upright and good man, fearing God 
and departing from evil ? Then Satan answered the Lord : Is it for 
nought that Job feareth God ? Hast Thou not placed a hedge around 
him, and around his house, and around all his possessions? Thou hast 
prospered the work of his hands, and his herds are greatly increased in 
the land. But only put forth Thy hand, and touch whatever he possesses, 
and to Thy face will he renounce Thee. And the Lord said to Satan : 
Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; but upon him lay not thy hand. 
So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord. 

Now on a certain day the sons and daughters of Job were eating and 
drinking wine in their eldest brother's house, when a messenger came 
to Job, and said : The oxen were ploughing, and the asses feeding 
beside them, and the Sabeans^ fell upon them, and took them away ; the 
servants also they slew with the edge of the sword ; and I alone am barely 
escaped to tell thee. While he was yet speaking, there came also another, 
and said : The fire of God has fallen from heaven, and has burned up the 

1 Uz, probably on the confines of Idumfea. 

'^^rj^ i. e., persecuted, harassed. From all times the opinions have been 
divided as to the epoch which has <;iven birth to this sublime poem ; and in the 
Talmud we see Job placed by different Doctors at two extreme points of the his- 
tory of the Hebrews. Some make Job a contemporary of Moses, and attribute 
the poem to the great legislator; others bring it down as far as the epoch of the 
exile, whilst others still assign to it diverse intermediate epochs. 

3 Inhabitants of Sheba. Corap. page 207. 



JOB. 337 

sheep, and the servants, and consumed them; and I alone am barely 
escaped to tell thee. While he was yet speaking, there came also another, 
and said : The Chaldeans made out three bands, and fell upon the camels, 
and carried them away ; the servants also they slew with the edge of the 
sword; and I alone am barely escaped to tell thee. While he was yet 
speaking, there came also another, and said : Thy sons and thy daughters 
were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house ; and, lo ! 
there came a great wind from the desert, and smote the four corners of 
the house, and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead ; and I alone 
am barely escaped to tell thee. Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and 
shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped ; and 
said : Naked came I forth from mother earth, and naked shall I return 
thither. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away ; blessed be the 
name of the Lord ! In all this Job sinned not, and uttered nothing rash 
against the Lord. 

Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves 
before the Lord; and Satan came also among them to present himself 
before the Lord, And the Lord said to Satan : Whence comest thou ? 
And Satan answered the Lord, and said : From wandering over the earth, 
and walking up and down in it. Then said the Lord to Satan : Hast 
thou observed My servant Job, that there is none like him upon the earth, 
an upright and good man, fearing God and departing from evil 1 And 
still he holds fast his integrity, although thou didst excite Me against him 
to destroy him without a cause. And Satan answered the Lord, and said : 
Skin for skin, yea, all that a man has, will he give for his life. But put 
forth now Thy hand, and touch his bone and his flesh, and to Thy face 
will he renounce Thee. And the Lord said to Satan : Behold, he is in 
thy hand ; but spare his life. 

Then Satan Avent forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job 
with sore boils from the sole of his foot to his crown. And he took a 
potsherd ^ to scrape himself withal, and sat down among the ashes. 

Theii said his wife to him : Dost thou still retain thy integrity ? Re- 
nounce God, and die. But he said to her : Thou talkest like one of the 
foolish women. What! shall we receive good at the hand of 
God, and shall we not receive evil ? In all this Job sinned not 
Avith his lips. 

And the friends of Job heard of all this evil that had come upon him, 
and came each one from his home ; Eliphaz the Temanite, and Bildad the 
Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite ; for they had agreed to come to 
mourn with him, and to comfort him. And they lifted up_ their eyes at a 
distance, and knew him not; then they raised their voices and wept, 
and rent each one his mantle, and sprinkled dust upon their heads toward 
heaven. And they sat down with him upon the ground seven days and 
seven nights, and none spoke a word to hira; for they saw that his grief 
was very great. 



193. JOB'S COMPLAINT. SPEECHES OF HIS 
FRIENDS. 

Job at last broke tbe silence, and opened bis moutb witb 
cursing the day on wbicb be was born : 

Perish the day in which I was bom ; let that day be darkness ; let not 
God seek it from above. Why died I not at my birth ? I should sleep, 
then should I be at rest. Why giveth He light to him that is in misery, 

1 A fragment of a proken pot. 
15 



338 JOB. 

and life to the bitter in soul, who long for death, and it cometh nt>i, and 
dig for it more than for hid treasures ; who rejoice exceedingly, yea, exult, 
when they can find a grave '? 

Then spoke Eliphaz, and said: 

If one attempt a word with thee, wilt thou he offended ? But who can 
refrain from speaking ? Behold, thou hast admonished many, thou hast 
strengthened feeble hands ; thy words have upheld him that was falling. 
But now affliction has come upon thee, and thou faintest ; it toucheth thee, 
and thou art confounded ! Is not thy fear of God thy hope, and the up- 
rightness of thy ways thy confidence ? Remember, I pray thee, whoever 
perished being innocent ? Or where have the righteous been cut off'? 

According to what I have seen, they who plough iniquity, and sow 
mischief, reap the same. 

An oracle was once secretly brought to me, and my ear caught a 
whisper thereof. Amid thoughts from visions of the night, when deep 
sleep fallethjipon men, a fear and a horror came upon me, which made all 
my bones tremble ; then a spirit passed before my face ; the hair of my 
flesh rose on end ; it stood still, but its face I could not discern ; a form 
was before my eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice : " Shall 
mortal man be just before God? Shall man be pure before his Maker? 
Behold, He puttethno trust in His ministering spirits, and His angels He 
chargeth with frailty ; what then are they who dwell in houses of clay, 
whose foundation is in the dust, who crumble to pieces, as if moth-eaten ! 
Between morning and evening are they destroyed ; they perish forever, 
and none regard eth it. The excellency that is in them is torn away; 
they die before they have become wise." 

Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth ; therefore despise not 
thou the chastening of the Almighty. For He bruiseth, and bindeth up ; 
He woundeth, and His hands make whole. 

Then Job answered and said: 

O that my grief were weighed thoroughly ! That my calamities were 
put together in the balance ! Surely they would be heavier than the sand 
of the sea ; for the arrows of the Almighty have pierced me. 

O that I might have my request, and that God would grant me that 
which I long for ! That it would please God to destroy me, that He 
would let loose His hand, and make an end of me ! 

To the afflicted kindness should be shown by a friend, else he casteth 
off the fear of the Almighty. But my brethren are faithless like a brook ; 
they pass away like streams of the valley, which are turbid by reason of 
the melted ice, and the snow, which hides itself in them. After a time 
they become narrow, they vanish ; when the heat cometh, they are dried 
up from their place. The caravans turn aside to them on their way, they 
go up into the desert, and perish. They are ashamed that they have 
relied on them ; they come to their place, and are confounded. So ye also 
are nothing ; ye see my calamity, and shrink back. 

Convince me, and I will hold my peace ; cause me to understand wherein 
I have erred. How powerful are the words of truth ! But what do your 
reproaches prove ? 

Bildad answered: 

How long wilt thou speak such things ? How long shall the words of 
thy mouth be like a strong Avind? Will God pervert judgment? Or 
will the Almighty pervert justice ? As thy children sinned against Him, 
He hath given them up to their transgression. But if thou wilt seek early 
to God, and make thy supplication to the Almighty, if thou wilt be pure 
ill id upright, surely He will yet arise for thee, and prosper thy righteous 



JO^. 339 

habitation ; so that thy beginning shall be small, and thy latter end very 
great. 

Behold, God will not cast away an upright man ; nor will He strengthen 
the hands of evil-doers. While He filleth thy mouth with laughter, and 
thy lips with gladness, they that hate thee shall be clothed with shame, 
and the dwelling-place of the wicked shall come to nought. 

Answer of Job: 

Of a truth, I know that it is so ; how can man be just before God 1 If 
He choose to contend with him, he can not answer Him to one charge of 
a thousand. He is excellent in wisdom, mighty in strength ; Avho hath 
hardened himself against Him, and prospered 1 He shaketh the earth 
out of her place, and the pillars thereof tremble. He commandeth the 
sun, and it riseth not, and sealeth up the stars. He alone boweth down 
the heavens, and walketh upon the high waves of the sea. Who will say 
to him : What doest thou 1 He, that falleth upon me with a tempest, 
and multiplieth my wounds without cause ! That will not suffer me to 
take my breath, but filleth me with bitterness ! 

It is all one ; therefore I will affirm. He destroyeth the righteous and 
the wicked alike. 

Are not my days few ? O spare then, and let me alone, that I may be 
at ease a little while, before I go, — whence I shall not return, — to the land 
of darkness and death-shade. 

Then answered Zophar the Naamathite, and said: . 

Thou say est, My speech is pure ; I am clean in Thine eyes, [O God !] 
But O that God would speak, and open His lips against thee ; that He 
would show thee the secrets of His wisdom. His wisdom, which is un- 
searchable ! Then shouldst thou know that God forgiveth thee many of 
thine iniquities. 

Canst thou search out the deep things of God ? Canst thou reach the 
perfection of the Almighty ? 'Tis high as heaven, what canst thou do ? 
Deeper than hell, what canst thou know ? For He knoweth the unright- 
eous ; He seeth iniquity, when they do not observe it. 

If thou direct thy heart, and stretch out thy hands toward Him, if thou 
put away iniquity from thy hand, and let not wickedness dwell in thy 
habitation, then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot ; yea, thou shalt 
be steadfast, and have no fear. 

Job's review of Ms past life: 

O that I were as in months past, in the days when God was my guar- 
dian ! When His lamp shone over my head, and when by its light I 
walked through darkness ! 

When I went forth to the gate in the city, and took my seat in the 
market-place, the young men saw me and hid themselves, and the aged 
arose, and stood. The ear that heard me blessed me, and the eye that saw 
me bore witness to me. For I delivered the poor, when they cried, and the 
fatherless, who had none to help him. The blessing of him that was 
undone came upon me, and I caused the heart of the widow to rejoice. 
I put on righteousness, and it clothed me ; and justice was my robe and 
diadem. I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame ; I was a 
father to the poor, and the cause of the unknown I searched out ; and I 
broke the teeth of the wicked, and plucked the spoil from his jaws. 

Did not I weep for him that was in trouble "? Was not my soul grieved 
for the poor ? 

If I have walked with falsehood, and if my foot hath hastened to deceit ; 
if my steps have turned aside from the way, and my heart followed mine 



340 JOB. 

eyes, or if any stain have cleaved to my hand, then may I sow, and 
another eat, and what I plant, may it be rooted up ! 

Have I refused the poor their desire, or caused the eyes of the widow to 
fail ? Have I eaten my morsel alone, and forbid the fatherless to partake 
of it ? Nay, from my youth he grew up with me, as with a father, and I 
have assisted the widow from my birth. If I have seen any wretched one 
without clotliiug, or any poor man without covering; if his loins have 
not blessed me, and he have not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep; 
if I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, because I saw my help 
at the gate, then may my shoulder fall from the blade, and my arm be 
broken at the socket ! 

If I have made gold my trust, or said to the fine gold : Thou art my 
confidence ; have I rejoiced at the destruction of him that hated me, or 
exulted when evil came upon him 1 Nay, I have not suffered my lips to 
sin, by imprecating a curse upon his life. Have not the men of my tent 
exclaimed : " Who is there that hath not been satisfied with his meat 1 " 
The stranger did not lodge in the street ; I opened my doors to the trav- 
eller. Have I, after the manner of men, hidden my transgression, con- 
cealing my iniquity in my bosom, then let me be confounded before the 
great multitude! Let the contempt of families cover me with shame! 
Yea, let me keep silence ! let me never appear abroad ! 

O that He would yet hear me ! Here is my signature ; let the Almighty 
answer me. 

Then was kindled tlie wrath of Elihu, who had waited 
till Job had spoken, against Job, because he had pronounced 
himself righteous rather than God, and against his three 
friends, because they had not found an answer, and yet had 
condemned Job. And he said: 

Hear, therefore, my discourse, I pray thee, O Job, and attend to all my 
words ! 

Surely thou hast said in my hearing, I have heard the sound of thy 
words : " I am pui-e, and without transgression ; I am clean, and there is 
no iniquity in me." Behold, in this thou art not right; I will answer 
thee; for God is greater than man; why dost thou contend with Him ? 
For He giveth no account of any of Plis doings. For God speaketh once, 
yea, twice, when man regardeth it not. 

But if there be with Him a messenger, an interpreter, one of a thousand, 
who may show unto man his duty, then will God be gi-acious to him, and 
say : " Save him from going down to the pit, I have received the ransom." 
His flesh shall become "fresher than a child's ; he shall return to the days 
of his youth. He shall pray to God, and He will be favorable to him, and 
permit him to see His face with joy, and restore unto man his innocence. 
He shall sing among men, and say : " I sinned, I acted perversely, yet 
hath He not requited me for it ; He hath delivered me from going down 
to the pit, and my eyes behold the light." 

Whilst Elihu was yet speaking, the Lord Himself inter- 
posed, and addressed Job from the n^idst of a tempest: 

Who is this, that darkencth My counsels by words without knowledge ? 
Gird up thy loins like a man ! " I will ask thee, and answer thou i\Ie ! 
Where wast thou, when I laid the foundations of the earth 1 Declare, 
since thou hast such knowledge ! When the morning-stars sang together, 
and all the sons of God shouted for joy ? 

Who shut up the sea Avith doors, when I appointed its bounds, and 
said : Thus far shalt thou come, and no farther ! Here shall thy proud 
waves be stayed ! 



JOB. 341 

"Where is the way to the abode of light ? And darkness, where is its 
dwelling-place ? 

Hast thou been at the store-houses of the snow, or seen the treasuries 
of the hail 1 

Canst thon lift up thy voice to the clouds, so that abundance of waters 
will cover thee 1 Canst thou send forth lightnings, so that they will go, 
and say to thee : " Here we are " ? Who hath imparted understanding 
to thy reins, and given intelligence to thy mind ? 

Hast thou given the horse strength 1 Hast thou clothed his neck with 
his quivering mane ? Hast thou taught him to bound like the locust 1 
How majestic his snorting! how terrible! He paweth in the valley ; he 
exulteth in his strength, and rusheth into the midst of arms. He langheth 
at fear ; he trembleth not. and turneth not back from the sword. Against 
him rattleth the quiver, the flaming spear, and the lance. With rage and 
fury he devoureth the ground ; he standeth not still, when the ti-umpet 
soundeth. He saith among the trumpets, Aha! aha! and snuflfeth the 
battle afar off; the thunder of the captains, and the war-shout. 

Is it by thy wisdom that the hawk fiieth, and spreadeth his wings 
toward the south 1 Doth the eagle soar at thy command, and build his 
nest on high 1 

Gird up now thy loins like a man ! I will ask thee, and do thou in- 
struct Me ! Wilt thou even disannul My judgment ^ Wilt thou condemn 
Me, that thou mayst appear righteous ? Then, indeed, will I give thee 
the praise, that thine own right hand can save thee. 

Then Job answered tlie Lord, and said: 

I know that Thou canst do everything, and that no purpose of Thine can 
be hindered. Who is he that darkeneth Thy counsels by words without 
knoAvledge? Thus have I uttered what I understood not; things too 
wonderful for me, which I knew not. Wherefore I abhor myself, and 
repent in dust and ashes. 

And when the Lord had spoken these words unto Job, he 
said to Ehphaz the Temanite: 

" My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends ; for ye 
have not spoken concerning Me that Avhich is right, as hath My servant 
Job. Take ye, therefore, seven bullocks, and seven rams, and go to My 
servant Job, and offer for yourselves a burnt-offering, and My servant Job 
shall pray for you." 

So they did as the Lord commanded them; and He had 
regard to the prayer of Job. And the Lord restored the 
prosperity of Job, when he had prayed for his friends, and 
the Lord gave him- twice as much as he had before. And 
the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than the begin- 
ning. And Job lived after this a hundred and forty years, 
and saw his sons, and his sons' sons, even four generations. 
Then Job died, being old and satisfied with days. 

194. THE SONG OF SONGS. 
The biblical book called " The Song of Songs " i forms a poem the 

1 This book is attributed to Solomon, and means, according to the Hebrew 
idiom, the most excellent song. This title did not proceed from Solomon, who 
would scarcely have praised his composition as a most excellent one. There is 
now a general belief that this book was written long after the captivity. 



342 SONG OE SONGS. 

subject of which is mutual love. By some the book is taken in its lit- 
eral sense, as if the author intended to display the victory of humble and 
constant love over the temptations of wealth and royalty. Since the 
earliest times, however, the opinion prevailed that under the literal sense 
a foreign or distant meaning was concealed, or that the book was an alle- 
gory, that is a writing, the language of which seems to represent one 
thing, but really it means another.^ 

My beloved speaks, and says to me : 

" Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away ! 

For, lo, the winter is past, 

The rain is over and gone ; 

The flowers appear on the earth ; 

The time of the singing of birds is come, 

And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land ; 

The fig-tree is spicing its green fruit. 

The vines in blossom give forth fragrance. 

Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away ! 

O my dove, that art in the recesses of the rock. 

In the hiding-places of the steep craggy mountain. 

Let me see thy face, 

Let me hear thy voice ! 

For sweet is thy voice, 

And thy face lovely." 

Love is strong as death ; 

True love is firm as the grave ; 

Its flames are flames of fire, 

The fire of Jehovah. 

Many waters cannot quench love. 

Nor can the floods drown it. 

Would a man give all the wealth of his house for love. 

It would be utterly contemned. 



195. THE BOOK KOHELETH. 

The book Koheleth 2 shows the vanity of all earthly things and efforts-. 
The author 3 (according to the inscription, Solomon) meant by it, that 
there is nothing in the world which can satisfy the wants of the soul, and 
that it can never make any one truly happy. He shows the vanity of 
knowledge, pleasure, power, honor, and wealth, and therefore recommends 
a cheerful enjoyment of life as it passes, the putting away of care and 
sorrow, and finally as the conclusion of the whole matter, and the whole 
business of man : to fear God and keep His commandments. 

Mere vanity, says the Preacher, mere vanity, ail is vanity. What 
profit has a man by all his labor with which he wearies himself under the 
sun ? All words become weary ; man cannot express it ; the eye is not 
satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing. 

The thing that has been, that will be ; and that which has been done, 

1 The Chaldee paraphrase or Tarsum regards the work as a figurative descrip- 
tion of God's gracious conduct towards His people. Aben-Ezra. belonixiuQ: to the 
twelfth century, exclaims: "Abhorred be the thought that the Soug of Songs 
should be put among the works of fleshly lust ! " 

^ ri/tlp a preacher, one who harangues a congregation. 

3 There is a diversity of opinion in regard to the age and the author of this book. 
The inscription does not prove that Solomon wasthe author; but only that the 
author adopted the plan of introducing into the book one so celebrated through- 
out the East for wisdom and prosperity as Solomon, for the purpose of giviuar 
weight to the sentiments which are put into his mouth. 



KOHELETH. 343 

that will be done; and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there 
any thing of which a man may say : " Behold, this is new " "? It has been 
long ago, in the times which were before us. I communed with my 
heart, saying : *' Behold, I have gained more and greater wisdom than all 
who have been before me at Jerusalem; yea, my mind has learned much 
wisdom and knowledge." And I gave my mind to know wisdom, and to 
know senselessness and folly ; I perceived that this also is striving after 
wind. For in much wisdom is much vexation, and he that increases 
knowledge increases sorrow. 

I said in my heart : " Come, now, I will try thee with mirth ; therefore 
enjoy pleasure ! " But, behold, this also was vanity. I said of laughter : 
"It is mad;" and of mirth: ''What avails if?" I made me great 
works. I built me houses ; I planted me vineyards. I made me gar- 
dens and parks, and planted in them fruit-trees of every kind. I made 
me pools of water, with which to Avater the grove that produces trees. I 
got me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house. I had 
also herds of great and small animals, more than all who were in Jerusa- 
lem before me. I gathered me also silver and gold, and the wealth of 
kings, and of the provinces. I got me men-singers and women-singers, and 
the delights of the sons of men, a chosen woman, and chosen women. 
My wisdom also remained with me. And whatever mine eyes desired I 
kept not from them ; I withheld not my heart from any joy. Then I 
looked upon all the works which my hands had wrought, and upon all 
the labor which I had toiled in performing, and, behold, it was all vanity, 
and striving after wind, and there was no profit under the sun. 

There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common 
among men ; a man to whom God has given riches, wealth, and honor, 
and nothing is Avanting to him which he desires, yet God gives him not 
to taste thereof; but a stranger enjoys it. This is vanity, and a grievous 
evil. 

Cast thy bread upon the waters ! for after many days thou shalt find it. 
Give a portion to seven, yea, to eight ! for thou knowest not what evil 
shall be upon the earth. AVhen the clouds are full of rain, they empty 
themselves upon the earth ; and when the tree falls to the south or the 
north, in the place where the tree falls, there it shall be. He that 
watches the wind shall not sow, and he that gazes upon the clouds shall 
not reap. In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not 
thy hand ! For thou knowest not whether this shall prosper or that, or 
whether both shall be alike good. 

Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to 
behold the sun. For though a man live many years, he rejoices in them 
all ; for he remembers the days of darkness, that they shall be many. 
All that comes is vanity. Eejoice, young man, in thy youth, and let 
thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of 
thy heart, and in the sight of thine eyes ! but know thou, that for all 
these things God will bring thee into judgment. Therefore remove sor- 
row from thy heart, and put aAvay evil from thy body ! for childhood and 
youth are a vapor. 

Remember, also, thy Creator in the days of thy youth, before the evil 
days come, and the years draw nigh, of which thou shalt say : " I have no 
pleasure in them; " before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the 
stars become dark, and the clouds return after the rain ; at the time 
when the keepers of the house (the arms) tremble, and the men of war 
(the thighs and legs) bow themselves, and the grinders (the teeth) cease 
because they are few, and those that look out of the windoAVS (the eyes) 
are darkened ; when the doors (the lips) are shut^ in the streets, because 
the sound of the grinding is low ; Avhen they rise up at the voice of the 

1 The old man seldom opens Ms mouth to eat or to speak, because the teeth are 
gone. 

4 



344 KOIIELETHT. 

bird, and all the danuhtors of music are brought low,^ when, also, they 
are afraid of that which is high,'^ and terrors are in the way, and the 
almond is despised, and the locust^ is a burden, and the caper-berry 'i fails ; 
since man goes to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets ; 
before the silver cord Ije snapped,^ and the golden bowl be brokenj'J or 
the bucket broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the well, and 
the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit return to God who 
gave it. 

Mere vanity, saith the preacher, all is vanity ! 

Let us hear the end of the whole discourse ! Fear God and keep his 
commandments! For this is the duty of all men. For God will 

BRING EVERY WORK INTO JUDGMENT, WITH EVERY SECRET THING, 
WHETHER IT BE GOOD, OR WHETHER IT BE EVIL. 

1 Sound low, are not heard by him. 
■■' To ascend stairs, hills. 

3 Which was a common food with the Orientals, and was regarded as of easy 
digestion. 

4 The caper-berry was regarded as a provocative of appetite and lust. 

5 The lamp suspended from a ceiling by a silver cord. 

6 The golden bowl is the reservoir of oil. The cord being decayed with age, 
giving way and sutler ing the bowl of oil to fall upon the floor and be broken, and 
thus extinguish ttie lamps. 



THE BOOKS OF 

HOLT SCEIPTUEE 



196. WHEN COMPLETED? AND HOW DIVIDED? 
THE APOCRYPHA. 

Jewish tradition ascribed to Ezra and to the Great Synagogue,^ or 
assembly of scholars, of which he was the reputed founder, the task of 
collecting and promulgating the Scriptures. Another early tradition 
assigns a like work to Nehemiah, of whom it is said that he, "founding 
a library, gathered together the acts of the kings and the prophets of 
David, and the epistles of the kings concerning the holy gifts" (2 Mace. 
II. 13.) These two traditions are clearly so far in accord, that they 
assign the fonnation of the present collection of the Jewish Holy Scrip- 
tures (generally called the Old Testament) to the time of the revival of 
the rehgion of Israel under the rule of the Persian kings. In proportion 
as the prophetic power ceased to manifest itself, the prophetic writings of 
an earlier time became more precious and distinctive. 

The earliest statement o^the number of the books of the Old Testa- 
ment is given by Josephus (37 A. C. E.). He counts up the books which 
are justly held to be Divine, as including (1) iive books of Moses, (2) 
thirteen "Prophets, and (3) four containing hymns and rules of life. The 
total makes up twenty-two, the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet. 

The great Avorkof Ezra^ (and his followers) was his collecting together 
and setting forth a correct edition of the Holy Scriptures ; he disposed 
them in their proper order, and settled the canon ^ of scripture for his 
time. These books he divided into three parts: 1st, the Law; 2d, the 
Prophets ; and 3d, the Hagiographa, i. e., the holy writings. It is most 
likely that the two books of Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, as 
well as Malachi, were afterward added, in the time of Simon the Just,^ 
and that it was not till then that the Jewish canon of the Holy Scriptures 
was fully completed. 

1 It consisted of 120 members, whose decrees were quoted afterwards as the 
Dibre SOpherim, the words of the Scribes. 

2 Ezra is in some respects a collective noun, to which Jewish tradition attaches 
all that has been done after the exile of Babylon, for the collection and the con- 
servation of the sacred texts.— Gesenius, Geschichte der Hebraischen Sprache und 
Schrift, page 157. 

3 Canon (Kavwv), connected with " cane," meant primarily a straight rod, and 
so a measure rule ; hence the list of books which, according to a certain rule, 
were considered to belong to the sacred books. 

4 High-priest (300 B. C. E.), succeeded his father Onias. From the holiness of 
his life, and the great righteousness which shone forth in all his actions, he was 
called Simon the Just. 



(345) 



346 BOOKS OF HOLY SCRIPTURE. 

This Canon now consists of 24 books, whic^ are supposed to have three 
different degrees of authority: The Thora (rTIlD), written under an 
immediate Divine inspiration; The Prophets (D^NOJ), communicated 
by a prophetical spirit, inferior to that of Moses ; and The Hagiogra- 
PHA (D':nr\D), given by the Holy Spirit, inferior to the prophetical. 

The Canon was probably closed in the Maccabean epoch. The last 
which was received there is said to have been the Book of Daniel. 

The oldest translation of the Bible is made in Greek and called the 
Septuagint (Seventy), from the tradition that it was made by seventy 
elders summoned from Jerusalem by Ptolemy Philadelphus (B. C. E. 271 j. 
The literary activity of Alexandria led, howeven, to the composition of 
other books in Greek, or to translations from Aramaic books. These 
later books were then brought together with the earlier books, which 
were grouped according to their subjects, history with history, didactic 
with didactic books, with no distinction as to their authority. In this 
way the Greek Bible presented a different order, and included other books 
than the Hebrew Bible as it was read in Palestine. All those books that 
were not found in the Hebrew Bible were called D'^JJ. The Greek word 
Apocrypha is — in all probability — the translation of Genusim (hidden, 
secret), a word with which those books were designated in which the 
people were not allowed to read publicly in the Synagogue, either because 
they were in some respect found faulty, or because they were not counted 
among the inspired books. The twenty-four books of which the Bible 
consists are : 

I. The Pentateucli, comprising: 

Genesis, page 5 

Exodus, " 49 

Leviticus, " 69 

Numbers, " 74 

Deuteronomy, " 87 

II. The Prophets, comprising six books of the 
"Earlier Prophets": 

Joshua, page 93 

Judges, " 102 

Two Books of Samuel, pages 126 and 167 

The two Books of the Kings, " 190 " 231 

The "Later Prophets": 

Isaiah, page 257 

Jeremiah, " 277 

Ezekiel, , " 283 

The Twelve Minor Prophets: 

Rosea, page 2.54 

Joel, " 246 

Amos, " 252 

Obadiah, " 289 

Jonah " 250 

Micah, " 259 

Nahum ♦' 268 

Bahakkuk, " 274 

Zephaniah, " 273 

Haqqai, " 314 

Zech'ariah, " 315 

Malachi, " 333 



BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY. 347 

III. The Hagiographa, comprising nine books: 

Psalms, page 196 

Proverbs, " 209 

Job, " 336 

Song of Songs,^ " 341 

Ruth,'^ " 121 

Lamentations,^ • ** 288 

Koheleth,^ " 342 

Esther,^ " 301 

Daniel,^ , " 292 

Ezra,"! " 310 

Nehemiah, " 324 

The Two Books of Chronicles, " 323 

The Apocrypha contain: 

The Book of Wisdom, the Book of the Son of Sirach, Baruch, Tobit, 
Judith, Supplements to Daniel, Supplements to Esdras, and the two 
Books of the Mgwcabees. 



BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY. 

197. A. THE HOLY LAND. 

§ I. VAEIOUS NAMES OF THE COUNTRY. 

1. The Land op Canaan. — Derived from the Descendants of Canaan, 

grandson of Noah, its earliest inhabitants. Under this name, how- 
ever, only that part of the land was comprehended which lay W. 
of the Jordan. 

2. The Land of Israel. — A* name given to it after its conquest by 

Joshua, and its division among the tribes. 

3. The Land of the Hebrews. — ^From the superior influence of that 

tribe. 

4. The Holy Land. — Because it was the chosen and consecrated spot 

in which the one true God was acknowledged and worshipped. 

5. Palestine. — Derived from the Philistines who had settled on the 

eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, and with whom the Israel- 
ites were frequently at war. 

6. JuDEA. — Originally distinguishing the southern part of the land; 

after the return from the captivity, however, given to the whole 
country. 

1. 2, 3, 4, 5 are called the five Megilloth, or rolls, from their being written on sepa- 
rate rolls of parchment, for use in synagogue worship. 
8. '' Daniel and Ezra are composed partly in Hebrew and partly in Chaldee. 



348 BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY. 



§ 2. SITUATION AND LIMITS. 

This country presents the appearance of a narrow slip, extending 
along the eastern coast of the Mediterranean ; from which, to the river 
Jordan, the utmost width does not exceed 50 miles. It is situated in the 
5th climate, between the 31st and 34th degrees of N. latitude, having the 
Mediterranean Sea on the W. ; Lebanon and Syria on the N. ; Arabia 
Deserta, and the land of the Ammonites, Moabites, and Midianites, on 
the E. ; the river of Egypt (the Sihor), the Desert of Zin, the S. shore of 
the Dead Sea, and the river Arnon, on the S. ; and Egypt on the S. W. 
Its extreme length was about 190 miles, and its width about 80. (These 
boundaries are accurately described by Moses, in Numbers 34, 1-15.1) 

§3. MOUNTAINS. 

The mountains, which extend through the whole country from N. to 
S., are parts of the Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon. On the eastern side 
of the Jordan are the Mountains of Gilead, which extend from Hermon 
S., to Arabia Petrea. The N. part of this chain, known by the name of 
Bashan, was celebrated for its stately oaks, and numerous herds of cattle. 
In the S. parts of these mountains were the Abarim, or passes, the most 
eminent of which were Pisgah and Neho, which command a view of the 
whole land of Canaan. (Comp. page 92.) 

On the Avestern side of the river are Mount Carmel, a range of hills, 
extending ten or twelve miles, nearly N. and S., coming from the plain of 
Esdraelon and ending in the promontory or cape which forms the bay of 
Accho. 

The Mountains of Israel, or Ephraim, in the very centre of the Holy 
Land, and opposite to 

The Mountains of Judah. Single mountains are : 

Tabor, a large hill rising in the plain of Esdraelon in Galilee, about 
three and a quarter hours distant from Tiberias. 

The Mount of Olives near Jerusalem. 

The mountains of Ii^bal and Gerizim (comp. page 88), the fonner to the 
N. and the latter to the S. of Sichem. 

§ 4. VALLEYS, PLAINS, -AND DESERTS. 

1. The Valley of Hinnom, lying at the foot of Mount Moriah,^ and 

rendered memorable by the idolatrous and inhuman worship there 
paid to Moloch. 

2. The Valley of Jehoshaphat, also called the Valley ofKedron, lies 

between the foot of Mount Mori ah, as a continuation of Zion, on 
the E. 

3. The Vale op Shiddim is the once fruitful spot upon which formerly 

stood the five cities of the plain. (Comp. page 14.) 

4. The Valley of Mamre, situate about two miles from Hebron, S. 

5. The Valley of Elah, or the Terebinthine Vale, is in the S. W. of 

Canaan, and about three miles from Bethlehem. It is renowned 
as the field of the victory of David over Goliath. 

^The kingdom of David and Solomon, however, extended far beyond these 
limits. 
2 Comp. page 20, note 1. 



BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY. 349 

6. The Plain is a tract which extends from Gaza to Joppa, and forms 

part of the Plain of the Mediterranean, which reaches from tlie brook 
Bezer to Mount Carmel. The part lying between Joppa and Carmel 
was called Sharon. 

7. The Plain of Esdraelon, the Great Plain, or the Vale of 

Israel, having on its northern side the abruptly-rising Tabor. 

8. The Region round about Jordan, extending from the Sea of Tibe- 

rias to the Dead Sea, on each side of the Jordan, Of this district 
the Plain of Jericho forms a part. 

9. The Wilderness of Judea began near Jericho, and extended 

along the shores of the Jordan and the Dead Sea, to the mountains 
of Edom. 

10. The Desert, where the Israelites wandered forty years, extended 
from the east side of the Red Sea to the confines of the land of 
Canaan, and is known as a part of the vast Desert of Arabia. 

§ 5. RIVERS, LAKES, SEAS. 

Among the rivers, the most important is the Jordan, which flows 
through the country from north to south, and empties into the Dead 
Sea ; all the other rivers, called in the Bible Brooks, are unimportant, — 
as, for instance, the brook Kidron, near Jerusalem, emptying into the 
Dead Sea ; the Cherith (comp. page 219) ; the Kishon, coming from Mount 
Tabor, and flowing into one of the bays of the Mediterranean ; the Arnon, 
east of Jordan, emptying into the Dead Sea; theJabbok (comp. page 32). 

There are three seas or lakes which are connected by the Jordan. 1. 
The Lake of Tiberias, or Sea of Galilee, called in more early times 
the Sea of Chinnereth, abounding in fish. 2. The Sea of Merom, or 
Samochonitis, a small sea in the north. 3. The Dead Sea, or Salt Sea, 
Lake Asphaltites, on the spot where Sodom and Gomorrah were. In 
this sea there are no fish or other animals, for it is full of asphalt. 

§6. INHABITANTS. 

The original iuhabltants of the country were the Horites, Rephaim, 
Anakim. These were either driven away or destroyed by the Canaanites, 
who immigrated from the coast of the Arabian Sea. In Abraham's 
times these tribes consisted of the following divisions : The Canaanites, 
the Amorites, the Hittites, the Jebusites, the Perizzites, and the Hivites. 
Besides these, there was also a tribe of Phcenicians, called the Philistines, 
who inhabited the y)lains on the coast of the Mediterranean. When the 
Hebrews, under Joshua, conquered the country and took possession of it, 
several of these tribes were wholly destroyed by them ; others Avere driven 
away ; while some were subdued and left in their settlements. The Phi- 
listines and the Jebusites were not overcome until by David, who also 
brought other neighboring nations, such as the Amalekites, Edomites, 
Moabites, and Ammonites, to subjection, and united their territories with 
that of Palestine. 

The twelve tribes formed the principal inhabitants of the country until 
the downfall of both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. 

The Israelites who remained in the northern kingdom united themselves 
with foreigners, who were brought from the Assyrian empire, and formed 
with them the Samaritans. These and the returned Jews from Babylon 
Avere, in later times, the inhabitants of the country. 



350 BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY. 



§ 7. DIVISIONS OF TIIE LAND. 

1. The division made by Joshua (comp. page 99). West of Jordan lived : 

a. The tribe of Simeon, in the south-west comer of the land, sur- 
rounded by Judah. Principal city : Ziklag. 

h. The tribe of Judah, north of Simeon, to the Dead Sea in the 
east. Principal city : Hebron, in later times, Jerusalem. 

c. The tribe of Dan, north of Simeon and west of Judah, towards 

the Sea. Principal city : Gath. 

d. The tribe of Benjamin, north of Judah, towards the Dead Sea. 

Principal city : Jericho. 

e. The tribe of Ephraim, north of Dan and Benjamin, from the Sea 

to the Jordan. Principal city : ShiLoh. 

f. The Half-tribe of Manasseh, north of Ephraim, from the Sea to 

the Jordan. Principal city : Sichem (Shechem). 

g. The tribe of Issachar, a narrow strip in a north-east direction. 

Principal city : Jezreel. 

h. The tribe of Zebulon, north-east of Issachar, on the Sea of Tibe- 
rias. Principal city : Gath-Hepher. 

i. The tribe of Asher formed the north-west corner of the country 
towards Phoenicia. Principal city : Beth-Rehob. 

k. The tribe of Napthali, east of Asher. Principal city : KedesL 
East of the Jordan lived : 

a. The second half of the tribe of Manasseh. Principal city: 
Edr'ei. 

h. The tribe of Gad, south of the eastern half of Manasseh. Prin- 
cipal city : Ramotk. 

c. The tribe of Reuben, south of Gad, bordering on Salt Lake. 
Principal city : Aroer, on the Arnon. 

This division was also preserved during the monarchicfil reign until the 
time of the destruction of both kingdoms. 

2. Solomon was the next who made a considerable division of the land, 

separating it into twelve provinces, or districts, and placing each 
under a peculiar officer (I Kings, 4, 7-19). 

3. After Solomon followed the revolt of the ten tribes, who erected them- 

selves into a separate kingdom, and were distinguished as the Kinrj- 
dom of Israel, while the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, continuing 
faithful to the House of David, formed the Kingdom of Judah. The 
latter kingdom contained all the southern parts of the land. The 
Kingdom of Israel contained all the middle and northern parts of 
the land, with the country beyond the Jordan ; its capital was Sama- 
ria, in the tribe of Ephraim, situated thirty miles north of Jerusa- 
lem. These divisions ceased on the subversion of the Kingdom of 
Israel by Shalmaneser. 

4. In post-biblical times, during the rule of the Romans in Palestine, the 

land was divided into the provinces of Jiidea, Satnaria, Galilee, and 
Perea. 



BIBLICAL GEOGRAPHY. 351 



198. B. ABOUT THE MOST IMPORTANT BIBLI- 
CAL COUNTRIES OUTSIDE OF PALESTINE. 

§ 8. IN ASIA. 

West of Palestine and properly belonging to its territory : 

1. The land of the Philistines, a narrow strip of land along the sea- 

coast towards Egypt, with the towns : Gaza, Ashkalon, Askelon, 
Ashdod, Gath, Ekron. 

2. The land of the Phcenicians, a small narrow strip of country, lying 

also along the shores of the Mediterranean, in a more northerly 
direction toward Syria, with the cities of Tyre and Sidon (Zidon). 

South of Palestine is the Arabia Petrsea, where we find : 

1. Idumea (the land of Edom), a portion of which belonged to Judea 

also in later times. This territory was afterwards called Nabathcea. 
Here the following towns were situated : Petra, Zoar, and Heshbon. 

2. The country of the Amalekites. 

3. The country of the Moabites, with the city Rabbath-moab. 

4. The countiy of the Midianites. 

5. The Desert of Mount Sinai. (Comp. page 51, note 3.) 

East of Palestine besides the Desert of Arabia, which lies next, the fol- 
lowing countries are mentioned. In the oldest times : 

1. Ur of the Chaldees, where Abraham at first lived, was the north- 

eastern part of Mesopotamia (that is, the country between the rivers 
Euphrates and Tigris). 

2. Haran, from which Abraham migrated to Canaan, was the north- 

western part of Mesopotamia. 

In later times : 

1. The Assyrian Empire, or the landof Ashur, now called Kurdistan, 

with Nineveh on the Tigris as the capital. 

2. The Babylonian Esipire, now called Irak Arabi, with the world- 

renowned Babylon as its capital, situated at the junction of the 
Euphrates and the Tigris. 

3. The Median Empire, having Ehbatana for a capital. — Rhages. 

4. The Persian Empire, having for a capital Persepolis. — Susa 

{Shushan). 

All these empires did not exist, as it is known by history, at the same 
time, but one after the other, as one was always swallowed up by the 
other. North of Palestine we finally meet besides Phoenicia, Syria with 
the cities of Damascus, Antiochia, and Bero'e. 



§ 9. IN AEEICA. 

In Africa it will be only necessary to mention Egypt, which the Israel- 
ites inhabited for a period of more than 200 years. Its capital Memphis, 
where the Pharaoes then governed, is called 'in the Bible Moph and Noph. 
On Goshen, where the Israelites lived, compare page 44, note 2. 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



(* The asterisks refer to the text in emaller print.) 

Page. 

1. "What is the meaning of Genesis? _ - - 5 

2. Who created the world ? - - - - 5 

3. What did God create on the first day ? - - - 5 

4. What on the second ?----- 5 

5. On the third ?--.--- 5 

6. On the fourth, fifth, and sixth days ? - - - 6 

7. What blessing did God pronounce on man ? - - 6 

8. What is the meaning of the word Adam ? - - 6, note. 

9. How did God provide man Avith a suitable companion"? 6 

10. When God saAV all that He had made, how did it appear 

to Him ?---..- 6 

1 1 . Why did God bless the seventh day ? - 

12. Where did God place man? . . - - 

13. What is the meaning of i5;t/ew? . - - - 7, note 

14. Of what tree was Adam forbidden to eat 1 - - 

15. Did they obey the commandment of God? 

16. What was their punishment? - . - - 8 

17. What name did Adam give to his wife ? why ? - - 8 

18. Who were Cain &ncl Abel? _ . - . 8 

19. What was the occupation of each of them ? - - 9 

20. Why did Cain kill his brother Abel ? - - - 9 

21. How did Cain answer God when asked where Abel was ? 9 

22. How was his sin punished ? . - - - 9 
*23. Of whom was Lamech the descendant ? - - - 9 
*24. What were the names of Lamech's wives ? - - 9 
*25. What were the names of Adah's sons ? - - - 9 
*26. For what were they distinguished ? - - - 9 
*27. What were the names of ZeV/aA's children? - - 9 
*28. What was the occupation of Tuta/- Cam ? - - 9 
*29. How long did Adam live? .... 10 
*30. For what is Methuselah noted ? - - - - 10 

31. Why did God bring a flood upon the earth ? - - 10 

32. Whom did He allow to live ? ... - 10 

33. What did iVoa/i take into the ark with him? - - 10 

34. Who were Noah's three sons ? - - - - 10 

35. On what mountain did the ark rest? - - - 11 

36. In Avhat part of the globe was Ararat situated ? - 11, note. 

37. After how many days were the waters of the flood abated ? 1 1 

38. How did Noah know when the ground was dry ? - 11 
*39. What covenant did God make with Noah and his de- 
scendants? --.-.- 12 

*40. When was man permitted to eat flesh, and with what 

restrictions? -.-..- 12 

*41. By what token was the covenant confirmed ? - - 12 

*42. Of what was Noah the first planter? ... 12 

*43. How was Noah treated by his sons Avhen intoxicated ? • 12 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



*44. Upon Avhom did ISToah pronounce a curse ? - 

45. Where did Noah's sons remove to ? - 

46. What did they build there, and for what object? 

47. Where was Bahel, and what does it mean? 

48. How were the people prevented from building the 

Tower of Babel ? 

*49. Who was Tera/i? . . . . . 

*50. Of which of Noah's sons was he a descendant ? 

*5 1 . What were the names of his sons ? - - - 

*52. Whose son was Lot ? - 

*53. In what country did ^a?-an die? - - _ 

*54. What Avas the name of Abram's wife 1 - 

55. Whom did Abram take with him on his journey 1 

56. What was Abram's native place 1 - - - 

57. What was Abram's relationship to Lot ? - - 

58. Whither did Abram go 1 - - - , - 

59. Why did Abraham and Lot separate themselves? 

60. W^hat is the name of the main river of Canaan ? 

61. What is said of the men of Sodom? - - _ 

62. Derive the word Hebrew, . . . _ 

63. What is the site of Canaan ? - 

64. Where did Lot afterwards dwell ? - - - 

65. With whom did the people of Sodom have a battle ? 

66. By whom was Lot rescued ? - - - - 

67. W^ho met Abram on his return and blessed him ? 

*68. Who was Abram's first son, and of whom was he born? 

*69. Explain the meaning of the name Ishmael, 

*70. What promises did God make to Abram ? - - 

*71. Why was his name changed to Abraham ? - - 

*72. Explain the names Abram and Abraham, 

*73. Sarai and Sarah ?---_- 

74. What did Abraham's visitors promise him ? - 

75. Give an account of Abraham's intercession for Sodom, 

76. Why did the Lord destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? 

77. How was Lot saved ? - - - - - 

78. What became of his wife? - _ . - 

79. What occupies the sites of Sodom and Gomorrali at the 

present day? ------ 

80. When was Isaac born ? - 

81. What is the meaning of the name Isaac? 
*82. Why were ZZa^-ar and Ishmael cast out ? 

*83. What became of them ? . - - . 

*84. What was foretold to Hagar respecting Ishmael ? 
85. What trial did God make of Abraham's faith and obe- 
dience ? -...-_ 

*86. In what place was Abraham commanded to sacrifice his 
son ?- 

*87. What place was originally called the land of Moriah? - 

88. What prevented the sacriiSce ? - - _ . 

89. At what age, and where did Sarah die? 

90. Where did Abraham bury her ? - . . 

91. What did Abraham say to his servant Eliezer ? - 

92. Where did Eliezer go ? - 

93. What is the meaning of the name Mesopotamia? 

94. What did Eliezer prav for? - . . . 

95. V^ho Vfa.s Rebelcah? " - 

96. What was the name of her brother? 

97. By whom was Eliezer invited to Bethiel's house ? 





Page. 




^12 




12 




12 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




13 




14 




14 




14 




14 


14, 


note. 


14, 


note. 




14 




14 




15 




15 




16 


16, 


note. 




16 




16 


16, 


note. 


16, 


note. 




17 




18 




18 




19 




19 


19, 


note. 




19 




19 




20 




20 




20 




20 




20 


20, 


note. 




21 




21 




22 




22 




23 


23, 


note. 




23 




2.3 




23 




24 



354 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



98. Whom did Isaac marry ? - - - - 

99, What was Abraham's age at his death ■? - - 

100. Where was he buried 1 - 

101. What children had Isaac by Rebekah ? - 

102. Who was Isaac's first born ? . - - . 

103. What is the meaning of the name Esau? what of the 

name Jacob ? • 

104. What was the head of the family considered ? - 

105. How did Esau esteem this distinction 1 - - 

106. Why was Esau called £</om? - - - - 

107. Where was the site of the land of the Philistines ? 

108. How and why did Eebekah obtain Isaac's blessing for 

Jacob? -.-..- 

109. What deception was practised by Jacob ? 

110. What resulted from Esau being deceived ? - - 

111. Whither was Jacob sent ? 

112. What was his relationship to Laban ? - - - 

113. What was Jacob's vision at 5eiAe^ ? - _ - 

114. What is the meaning of Bethel, and what was its name 

before? - 

115. How did Jacob act when he awoke ? - 

116. What was Jacob's vow ? _ . . . 

117. What wages did Jacob ask of Laban ? - 

118. How many daughters of Laban did he many, and'w;hat 

were their names ? - 

119. How came Jacob to leave Laban? - - - 

120. Relate the facts, . - - . - 
*\2l. Where is Mount Gilead'^ - . . - 

122. Where had Esau established himself? 
*123. Where was /SetV situated? - _ . - 

124. What were the fears entertained by Jacob at this time ? 

125. Where was the ford of Jabboh ? - . - 

126. How did Jacob acquire the name of /srae^ ? 

127. What is the meaning of the term Israel? 

128. How did Jacob become reconciled to Esau ? - 

129. After their reconciliation, whither did the brothers 

proceed ?------ 

130. Wheve wsis Shechem ? - - - - - 

131. What were the names of Rachel's children ? - 

132. How many sons had Jacob ? - . - - 

133. When did Rachel die, and where was she buried? 

134. Where was the site of Bethlehem ? - 

135. When, where, and at what age did Isaac die ? - 

136. By whom was he buried ? - - - - 

137. Why was Joseph hated by his brothers ? - - 

138. Which of his brothers interceded for his life? - 

139. To whom was Joseph sold? - - - - 

140. What was told Jacob concerning Joseph? 

141. What became of Joseph ? . . . - 

142. How came Joseph to be put into prison ? - - 

143. What was the dream of Pharaoh's butler, and Joseph's 

interpretation ?----- 

144. What was the baker's dream, and how was it inter- 

preted 1 ----- - 

145. Was Joseph remembered by the butler? 

146. What was Pharaoh's first dream ? - 

147. What did he dream the second time ? - 

148. How, and by whom were these dreams interpreted ? - 



Page. 
24 
24 
24 
24 
25 

25 

25, note. 
25 
25 

25, note. 

26 

26 
27 
27 
27 
28 

28 
28 
28 
29 



30 

30 

31, note. 

31 

31, note. 

32 

32, note. 

32 
32 
33 

33 

33, note. 

33 
33 
33 
33, note. 
33 
34 
34 
34 
35 
35 
35 
36 

37 

37 
37 
38 
38 
38 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



355 



149. What was then done with Joseph ? - 

150. What name Avas bestowed upon him by Pharaoh ? 

151. Whom did he many 1 - - - . . 

152. What were the names of Joseph's sons 1 - - 

153. What do these names mean ? - - . - 

154. How many of Joseph's brothers came to buy corn 1 - 

155. Why was not Benjamin sent 1 - - - - 

156. How did Joseph act towards his brothers on their first 

journey '?------ 

157. Which of the brothers remained imprisoned? - 

158. What did Joseph do with the money which his 

brothers paid? . - . - . 

159. What did Jacob say, when told of all that had befallen 

them? - - - 

160. What did Jacob say to his sons when they went on 

their second journey ? - - - - 

161. When Joseph saw Benjamin with his brothers, how 

did he treat them ? - 
*162. Why could not the Egyptians eat with the Hebrews? 

163. What did Joseph tell his steward to put into his broth- 

er's sack ? - - r - - 

164. In whose sack was the cup found ? 

165. What did the brothers do upon seeing it ? 

166. What did Judah now say to Joseph ? - . - 

167. Why did he wish to stay as a bondman, instead of 

Benjamin ? - 

168. What did Joseph then do ? - 

169. Where did he tell his father and brothers to dwell ? - 
*170. Where was Goshen? - - - - - 

171. When Jacob heard that Joseph was alive, what did he 

resolve to do ? 

172. Where did Jacob and his sons settle, and how many 

were there in the family ? - - . . 

173. How old was Jacob when he stood before Pharaoh and 

blessed him? _ - 

174. How long did Jacob live in Egypt ? - 

175. What act is mentioned of Jacob on his death-bed? - 

176. In what manner did Jacob bless the sons of Joseph? - 

177. How old was Jacob at his death ? - 

178. Where was he buried ? . - . . 

179. By whom was this cave bought ? - - - 
*180. What is meant by embalming dead bodies ? - 

181. What was Joseph's age at his death ? - - - 

182. Where was he buried ? - - - . - 

183. How long did Joseph live in Egypt ? - 

184. How long was he second ruler over Egypt ? - 

185. What oath did he take of his brothers ? - - 

186. Who are the chief persons mentioned in Genesis ? 

187. Why is the second book of Moses called Exodus ? 

188. How were the Israelites treated after Joseph's death? 

189. What excited the fear and jealousy of the Egyptian 

monarch ? - 

190. What cities were the Israelites compelled to build ? 

191. Where were these cities ? . . . . 

192. What did Pharaoh command concerning the male chil- 

dren ? ...... 

193. How did Jochebed save her child? 



Page. 
39 
39 
39 
39 
39 
40 
40 

40 
41 

41 

41 



41 





42 


42, 


note. 




43 




43 




43 




43 




44 




44 




44 


44, 


, note. 



45 

46 

46 
46 
47 

47 
46 

48 
47 
47, note. 
48 
48 



48 



49 
49 

49 
49 
49 

49 
50 



356 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



194. What did Pharaoh's daughter call the child? why? - 
*195. What does the name Moses mean ? - - - 

196. Who was Moses' father ? ... - 

197. What was the name of his sister? - . . 

198. Why did Moses flee from Egypt? 

*1 99. Of what tribe was Jochebed? . - - - 

200. Whither did Moses flee from the wrath of Pharaoh ? - 

*201. Where was Midian? - » - - - 

202.' Whom did Moses marry? , . . . 

*203. What Avas the name of Moses' father-in-law ? - 

204. What were the names of Moses' sons ? - - 

205. What do these names mean ? - . - - 

206. What Avas the name of Moses' father-in-law, according 

to Josephus ? - -* - 

207. Where, and how did God first appear to Moses ? 

208. What did God command Moses to do, whilst tending 

the sheep of Jethro ? . . . . 

*209. By what signs was Moses ordered to convince the 

Israelites and Pharaoh that he was sent by God ? - 
*210. What assistance did God give to Moses ? 

211. What relation was Moses to Aaron? - - - 

212. How did Pharaoh receive the application of Moses and 

Aaron? -..-.- 

213. Did the children of Israel believe Moses ? - 

214. HoAv old were Moses and Aaron when they stood be- 

fore Pharaoh ? _ . . . - 

*215. How many plagues did God inflict on the Egyptians? 
*216. Name them, ..-.-- 
*217. What feast commemorated the last of the plagues? - 
*218. Describe fully the feast of the Passover, 
*219. What was meant by a holy convocation? 
*220. On what day was the lamb slain ? - 
*221. When was the Passover kept ? . - - 

*222. What was the duration of the feast ? - 
*223. How Avere the houses to be marked? - - - 

224. How long had the Israelites dAvelt in Egypt ? - 

225. HoAv many Israelites quitted Egypt ? - 

226. Whither did they proceed ? - - - - 

227. What did the Israelites carry Avith them when leaving 

Egypt? 

228. What guided the Israelites by day and night ? 

229. HoAV Avere they rescued from Pharaoh at the Red Sea? 

230. Who Avas Miriam ?---.- 

231. HoAV Avere the Israelites fed during their stay in the 

Avilderness ? - 

232. What does manna mean ? - - - - 
*233. What occurred at Rephidim? - - - - 
*234. Whom did the Amalekites claim as their ancestor ? 
*235. HoAv were the Amalekites defeated ? - 

236. What did Jethro, upon hearing all that the Lord had 
done for Israel ?----- 
*237. What advice did Jethro give to Moses? 
*238. Where is the desert of Sinai ? ... 

239. For Avhat is Mount Sinai remarkable? - - - 

240. At Avhat period Avas the LaAv given to the Israelites 

from Sinai ? - 

241. How long Avas Moses on the Mount communing with 

God? - 



Page. 
50 
50, note, 
50 
50 
51 

50, note. 

51 

51, note. 

51 

51, note. 

51 

51 

51, note. 
52 

52 

52 
53 
53 

53 
54 

54 
54 
54, 55 
56 
56 
56, note. 
56 
56 
56 
56 
57 
57 
57 

57 

57 
58 
59 

60 
60 
60 
60, note. 
60 

61 

61 

62, note. 

62 

61-62 

65 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 357 

Page. 

242. How did Moses find the Israelites employed on coming 

down from Mount Sinai 1 - - - - 65 

243. How did he punish them ? - . . . 65 
*244. Describe the Tabernacle made .by Moses, - - 67 
*245. Who were the architects of the Tabernacle ? - - 67 
*246. What relation was Bezaleeb to Moses according to 

tradition? ....-- 67, note. 

*247. Into how rnanv places was the Tabernacle divided 1 - 67 

*248. What was the Holy of Holies ? - - - 67 

*249. Describe the covering of the Tabernacle, - - 67 

*250. What was the Sanctuary, or The Holy ? - - 67 
*251. Mention the chief Holy things used in the service of 

God, 67-68 

*252. In what part of the Tabernacle was the Ark? - - 67 

*253. The Mercv-seati .... - 67 

*254. Describe the Ark, .... - 67 

*255. Describe the Show-Bread Table, - - - 67 

*256. The golden Candlestick, .... 67 

*257. The Altar of Incense, ----- 67 

*258. The Altar of Burnt-offering, - - - - 6S 

*259. Describe the Laver, ----- 68 

*260. Describe the Ephod, ----- 68 

*26I. TheEobe, 68 

*262. Who were appointed to the priest-hood by Moses 1 - 68 

*263. Who to the High priest-hood ? . - - - 68 

*264. What were the vestments of the common priest 1 - 68 

*265. What Avas placed in the Holy of Holies 1 - - 68 

*266. What in the Sanctuary ? - - - - 68 

*267. Describe the Breast-plate, - - - - 68 

*268. Describe the Mitre and the golden plate, - - 68 

269. Who Avas Aholiab ? ----- 67 

270. Why is the name Leviticus applied to this book ? - 69 
*271. After the Tabernacle was finished, what was Moses 

commanded to do?- - - - - 69 

*272. What honors did the High Priest enjoy ? - - 69 

*273. WTiat were the duties of the Common Priests ? - 69 

*274. Who were Nadab and Abihul - - - - 70 

*275. What was their transgression ? - - - 70 

*276. What was their punishment 1 - - - - 70 
*277. Of what did the divine worship in the [Tabernacle 

consist? -..-_- 70 

*278. What is meant by national sacrifices ? - - - 70 

*279. What by individual sacrifices ? - - - 70 
*280. On what occasions were the males of the Israelites 

bound to appear before the Lord ? - - - 71 

*281. When is the Feast of Passover? ... 71 

*282. When is the Feast of Unleavened Bread? - - 71 
*283. What is meant by servile work ? ... 71, note. 

*284. What was the Feast of the Weeks ? - - . 71 
*285. What is it designed to commemorate, according to 

tradition? -...-- 71, note. 

*286. Describe the Feast of Trumpets, . - . 71 

*287. What was the great day of Atonement? - - 71 

*2B8. Describe the Feast of Tabernacles, ... 71 

*289. What was the Sabbatical Year? - . - 73 

*290. What was the Year of Jubilee? - . - 73 

291. Whv is the book of Numbers so called? - - 74 



358 EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 

Page. 
*292. Why were the men of the tribe of Levi not numbered 

with the others 1 - - - - - 74 

*293. Give the names of the tribes, - - - - 74 

*294. After Avhom were they named ? - - - 74 

*295. What Avas the number of the people? - - - 74 

*296. What Avcre the duties of the Levites 1 - - - 75 

*297. How were they divided ■? .... 75 
*298. Who were theNethinim'? . . - . 75, note. 
*299. What was the form of pralyer used by Moses when the 

ark set forAvard ?- - - - - 76 

*300. What prayer did he use Avhen it rested ? - - 76 

*301. Describe the manner in Avhich they marched, - - 76 

*302. When Avere the trumpets to be bloAvn ? - - 76 
*303. What Avere the sins and rebellions committed by the 

Israelites in the Avilderness 1 - - - . - 77 

*304. What Avas their punishment at Kibroth-hataavah ? - 78 

*305. Why Avas the place so called ? - - - - 78 

*306. Of Avhat sin Avere Aaron and Miriam guilty ? - - 78 

*307. What Avas the consequence ? - - - - 78 

308. HoAv many persons were sent to espy the land of Canaan 1 78 

309. What report did they make? - - - - 79 

310. HoAv did God punish the Israelites for refusing to 

march into Canaan "? . . . _ 80 

311. Who Avere the tAvo faithful spies ? _ - . 80 

312. HoAv long and for Avhat reason Avere the Israelites com- 

pelled to Avander in the wilderness ? - - - 80 

313. Describe the nature and consequences of the rebellion 

of Korah, ....-_ 80 
*314. What miracle Avas performed on Aaron's rod to con- 
firm his authority 1 - - - - - 82 

315. Where did Miriam die, and where Avas she buried 1 - 82 

316. What did the Israelites murmur for at Kadesh"? - 82 

317. What miracle Avas performed there ? - - . 83 

318. Why Avere Moses and Aaron not permitted to enter 

Canaan? ------ 83 

*3 19. Where Avas Mount Hor? - - - - 83, note. 

320. What is the manner of Aaron^s death 1 - - 83 

321. Where did it take place? ... - 83 

322. On Avhat occasion Avas Moses ordered to make a brazen 

serpent? ...-.- 84 

323. What befel Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king 

ofBashan? 84 

*324. Who Avas Balak ? ... - - 84 

*325. To whom did he send messengers, and why ? - - 84 
*326. To what tribes Avere given the kingdoms of Sihon 

and Og ? 86 

*327. On Avhat conditions ?----- 86 
*328. Were these kingdoms on the eastern or Avestern side of 

Jordan? ...... 86 

329. Why is this book called Deuteronomy ? - - 87 

*330. On Avhat mountain Avas the blessing to be pronounced? 88 

*331. On Avhat the curse? ..... 88 

*332. When should a release of debts be made? - - 89 

*333. What Avas the object of tlie cities of refuge? - - 90 

334. Where and at Aviiat age did Moses die ? - - 92 

335. From Avhat point did Moses see the promised land? - 92 
*336. Where arc the mountains of Abarini? - - - 92 

337. Where Avas Moses buried? . - . - 92 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



359 



338. Who took Moses' place as leader of the people ? 
*339. Where was Jericho 1 " - 
*340. Who concealed the spies sent by Joshua ? - 
341. By Avhat token was her house to be kno^^^l when the 
city was taken ? . > . 

*342. Where was Shittim ? - 

*343. Describe the passage of the Israelites over Jordan, 
344. What city was taken first by the Israelites on their 
entrance into Canaan ? - - - - 

*345. Account for the reverses Israel met with at the siege of 

Ai, 

*346. What is related of Achan ? - - - - 

*347. Where was Gibeonl ----- 

348. By Avhat stratagem did the Gibeonites escape destruc- 

'tion? - - - 

349. What was the fate eventually decreed to them ? 
*350. Where and how were the king of Jerusalem and his 

four allies overcome ? - 
*351. What befell the five conquered kiogs "? - 
*352. Of what part of Canaan became Joshua master in his 

first campaign? ... - - 

*353. What is meaiit by the Book'of Jashar ? 
*354. How many kings did Joshua overcome ? - - 

*355. AVliat still remained to be conquered ? - - - 

*356. How Was the land to be divided ? - - - 

357. What provision was made for the Levites ■? 

358. What was Caleb's portion ? - . - - 

359. What portion did Judah receive "? - - - 

360. What was the inheritance of Ephraim and Manasseh? 

361. Whither was the Tabernacle now brought 1 

362. Where was the territory of Benjamin 1 - 

363. What was Simeon's inheritance ■? - - - 

364. What were the bounds of Zebulun "? - - _ 

365. What Avas Issachai-'s inheritance ? . . . 

366. What did Asher receive ? - - - 

367. Whei'e was Naphtali^s territory ? . - - 

368. Where was the territory of Dan ? - - - 

369. Why did the tribe of Levi not receive a land posses- 

sion? ------- 

370. What tribes had their inheritance beyond Jordan? 

371. Into how many portions was the land of Canaan 

divided? - - 

372. HoAv old was -Joshua, at his death? - . - 

373. Where was he buried ? - 

374. When did the High-priest Eleazar die ? 

375. What events immediately succeeded the death of 

Joshua? -..--- 

*376. What were Baalim and Ashtaroth? - - - 

377. Who first in Canaan enslaved the Israelites? - 

378. Who was the first of the Judges to restore them to 

liberty? ------ 

379. Who was Othniel ? 

380. What Avas the Israelites' second oppression, and who 

relieved them ? . - - . - 

381. Give an account of Ehud, - - - - 

382. Who judged Israel after Ehud ? 

383. Who Avas Jabin ? - . . . . 

384. Give a brief account of Deborah, - - . 



Page. 
92 

93, note. 

93 

94 

94, ncite. 
94, 95 

95 

96 
96 

97, note. 

97 
97 

98 
98 

98 

98, note. 

99 

99 

99 

99 

99 

99 

99 

99 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 

100 
100 

101 
101 

101 
101 

102 

102, note. 

102 

102 
102 

102, 103 
103 
103 
103 
104 



160 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



Pace. 



385. Who was Barak? Sisera? - . . . 

*386. Where is Kedesh-Naphtali? - - . - 

*387. Where is Mount Tabor? . - - . 

388. To whom did Sisera flee? . . - . 

*389. Who were the Kenites ? - - - 

*39(). What became of Sisera ? - - - - 

*391. Who were the Midianites ? - - - . 

392. Who was Gideon ?----. 
*393. Wliat was meant by the Astarte? 

394. What xither name was given to Gideon? 

395. Why was he called thus? . . . . 

396. How was his army reduced ? 

*397. Who were Oreb and Zeeb, and what occurred to them ? 
*398. Explain Gideon's Ephod, . - - - 

399. Who was Abimelech ? - - - - - 

400. Who was Jotham ?----- 

401. What became of the sons of Gideon? - - - 

402. Where do we find the oldest fable ? - 

403. State the occasion on which it was used, 

*404. What was the end of Abimelech ? - - - 

*405. Who were Tola and Jair ? - - - - 

*406. Who were the Gileadites? . . - . 

*407. Where was Tob ? 

408. What was Jephthah's rash vow, and the cause of it ? 
*409. What tribe quarrelled with Jephthah ? 
*410. What peculiarity of pronunciation is recorded as be- 
longing to the Ephraimites ? - 
*411. Give the names of three Judges after Jephthah, 

412. Who was Mauoah? . - . - - 

413. What was the name of his son ? _ . _ 
*414. What was meant by a Nazarite? . _ . 
*415. Where was Timnath ? - . - 

416. Give an account of Samson's riddle, - - - 

417. What was Samson's reason for attacking the Philis- 

tines ?- 
*418. Where was the rock Etara ? . . - . 

*41 9. Where was Gaza? - . - - . 

*420. Where was the valley of Sorek ? - - - 

421, Wherein did Samson's strength lie? - . . 

*422. What was Dagon ? - ... 

423. By whom was Samson betrayed ? 

424. Give an account of Samson's death, - - - 

425. How long did he judge Israel? - 

426. Give some account of Ruth, . - . _ 
*427. Why did Ruth's mother-in-law no longer wish to be 

called Naomi ? - - - 

428. Who was Boaz ? . - - . . 

*429. What was meant by a Redeemer ? - - - 

430. To whom was Ruth married ? - 

431. How was Ruth connected with any of the kings of 

Israel? - - - * - 

432. Who Avas Obed ? - 

433. Who were Elkauah and Hannah? . . - 

434. Who was Eli ? - 

435. What name did Hannah give to her son ? 
*436. Of what tribe was Samuel a member? - 

*437. What were the names of Eli's sons ? - - - 

*438. What was Eli's sin? - - - - 



104, 


note. 


104, 


note. 




104 


104 


note. 




104 


105, 


note. 




105 


106, 


note. 




106 




106 




107 




108 


108, 


note. 




109 




109 




109 




109 




110 




111 




111 


111, 


note. 


111, 


note. 




112 




113 




113 




113 




113 




113 


113, 


note. 


114, 


note. 




115 




116 


117, 


note. 


117, 


note. 


118, 


note. 




118 


119, 


note. 




119 




119 




120 




121 




122 




122 


124, 


note. 




125 




125 




125 




126 




126 




127 


127, 


note. 




128 


128, 129 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



361 



439, How was Samuel called to the prophetic office 1 
*440. Where was Aphek 1 - - - - - 

*441. By what name were the Israelites kuown to foreign 
nations'? ...... 

442. What befell the Ark? - - - - 

443. How did the two sons of Eli die? 

444. What Avas the cause of Eli's death 1 - 

445. Whither was the Ark now taken 1 . - - 
*446. Where was Ashdod? . - - - - 
*447. Where was Gath? Ekron? . . . . 

448. What circumstances attended the possession of the Ark 

by the Philistines'? . - - - - 

449. How long did they keep it? - 

*450. Where was Mizpeh? . - - . - 

*45I. What does this mean : From Dan to Beer-sheba'? 

452. What occurred at Mizpeh ? - - - - 

453. Who was the last of the Judges 1 - - - 

454. Who were Joel and Abiah ? - ... 

455. What causes led to the establishment of a Monarchy 1 

456. Who was Saul 1 

457. Of what tribe was he ? . - - - - 

458. By what other name was a prophet known? - 

459. What occurred at Gibeah? - - - - 

460. Where was Saul chosen as king ? - - - 
*46l. Where was Jabesh-Gilead ? . - - - 
*462. Where was Gilgal? .... - 

463. Where was the kingdom confirmed to Saul ? - 
*464. Where were Michmash and Geba ? - - 139, 

465. What was Saul's first error ? - - . . 

466. What happened to Jonathan at Michmash? - 

467. Whom did Saul next attack ? - 
*468. Where was Telaim ? - - 

469, What was Saul's second oiFence ? - - - 

470, What occasioned his rejection ? - 

471, Why did Samuel reject the eldest son of Jesse ? 

472, When and by whom was David anointed king ? 

473, What introduced David to Saul's court ? - - 

474, Of what tribe was David ? . . . . 

475, Whose son was he ? - 

476, Where did his father live? - - . - 

477, In what relationship stood he to Euth ? 

478, Who was Goliath of Gath ? - - - - 

479, Describe David's encounter with him, - 

480, What occasioned the ill-will of Saul against David? - 

481, What daughter of Saul did David marry? 

482, What befel him soon afterwards ? - - - 

483, Describe David and Jonathan's parting, 

484, What did David at Nob ? - - - . 
*485. By what was Nob at that time distinguished ? 

486. What was the name of the High-priest there at that 

time? ....... 

487. Why did David counterfeit madness ? - 

488. Why did Saul destroy the priests of Nob ? 

489. Who executed the deed ? . - - - 

490. Which of the priests escaped ? - 

491. What happened to David at Keilah ? - 

492. On what occasion did David spare Saul's life ? 

16 





129 


130, 


note. 


130, 


note. 




131 




131 




131 




131 


131, 


note. 


131, 


note. 




131 




131 


132, 


note. 


132, 


note. 




133 




133 




134 




134 




135 




136 




135 




136 




137 


137, 


note. 


138, 


note. 




138 


140, 


notes. 




140 




141 




143 


143, 


note. 




143 




144 




145 




146 




146 



146, 147 

148, 149 

149 

150 

151 

151, 1.52 

153, 154 

153 

153 
154 
155 
155 
155 
155 
156, 157 



362 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



Page. 

*493. "When, and at what age did Samuel die 1 - - 158, note, 

*494. Where was Carmel? - . . - . 158, note. 

495. Who was Nabal ? - - - - - 158 

496. What was the name of Nabal's Avife? - - - 153 

497. What does the name Nabal signify ? ... 159 

498. Under what circumstances did David marry Abigail 1 160 

499. What did David at Ziph? .... 160-161 
*500. Where was Zik lag? ..... 162, note. 

501. What did David at Ziklag? - - - - 162 

502. Describe Saul's interview with the witch of Endor, - 163 

503. What befell Ziklag ? - - - - - 164 

504. In what battle came Saul by his end? ... 165 

505. What four persons died with him ? - - - 165 
*506. Why is this book called : The Second Book of Samuel ? 167, note. 

507. Give the date of David's reign over Judah, - - 168 

*508. Where was Hebron? . . - - - 169, note. 

509. WhowasAbner? - - - - - 169 

510. Who was Ishbosheth, and what befel him? - - 169 
*5ll. What was Ishbosheth's original name ? - - 169, note. 

512. Who was David's Commander-in-chief? - . 169 

513. Give the names of his two brothers, - - - 169 

514. What was their relationship to David ? - - 169 
*5 1 5. By whom was Abner slain ? - - - - 1 70 

516. By whom was Ishbosheth slain ? - - - 171 

517. How old was David when he began to reign? - - 171 

518. How long did he reign ? - - - - 171 
*519. Where was Mount Zion ? ... - 171, note. 

520. When did Jerusalem become a royal residence ? - 172 

521. What was its name in earlier times ? - - - 172 
*522. What occurred to Uzzah ? - - - - 172 
*523. Why Avas David not allowed to build the Temple ? - 173 
*524. What was the name of the prophet who announced to 

him the will of God ? - - - - 173 

*525. Relate some of David's successes, - - . 174 

526. Who was Mephibosheth ? ... - 175 

527. What befell him ? 175 

528. How was he treated by David ? - - - 175 

529. What occasioned the war with tiie Ammonites ? - 175 

530. How came Uriah bv his death ? - - - 176 

531. Who wasBathsheba? - - - - - 176 

532. How did Nathan reprove David ? - - - 177 

533. Who was Solomon ? - - - - - 178 

534. Who was Jedediah ? - - - - - 179 
*535. What do these names mean ? - - - - 178, note. 

536. Who was Solomon's mother? - - - - 

537. Which of David's sons killed his brother? - - 179 

538. Give an account of both of them, - - - 179 

539. Tell of Absalom's wicked conduct towards his father, 180 
*540. Where was the brook of Kidron? ... 181, note. 

.541. Who was Ahithophel? - .... 181 

.542. What is said of him? 181 

.543. What befell David in his flight? ... 181 

544. Who was Hushai ? ..... 181 

545. What was Ahithophel's advice to Absalom? - - 183 
.546. Who dissuaded him from following this advice? - 183 
.547. How did Ahithophel find his end? ... 184 
548. Where did the battle between David and Absalom take 

place?- ...... 184 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



363 



549. Who was the captain of all the host of Absalom ? 

550. How did David receive the tidings of Absalom's death ? 

551. What did Sheba? . : . . . 

552. What was the relationship of Amasa to David? 

553. By Avhom was Amasa slain ? - 

554. Give a brief account of Adonijah's conspiracy, 

*555. Where was the Gihon? - . . _ . 

556. When was Solomon proclaimed king ? - 
*557. What was David's dving charge to Solomon ? 

558. When did David die? .... - 

559. Where was he buried. ? - - - - - 

560. How long did David reign over Judah ? - - 

561. How long over all Israel? . . . . 

562. By whose orders was Joab put to death ? - - 

563. Who was Shemei, and what became of him ? - 

564. Give the date of Solomon's reign, ... 

565. What were the first acts of Solomon on coming to the 

throne? ...... 

*566. What were David's writings ? - 

*567. Describe the Book of Psalms, . - . - 

568. What did God say to Solomon in a dream when at 

Gibeon? ...... 

569. What was the king's reply ? - 

570. What was the first display of Solomon's wisdom ? 

57 1 . What was the extent 8f Solomon's kingdom just before 

building the Temple ? - - - . 

572. To what king was Solomon indebted for assistance in 

the erection of the Temple ? - - - 

573. What return did Solomon make for his liberality? 
*574. When, where, and by whom was the Temple built ? - 
*575. On what Mount? . . . - . 
*576. What was the form of the Temple ? - 

*577. What were its dimensions ? - . - . 

*578. How did Solomon divide it ? - 

*579. When was the Temple begun, and when was it fin- 
ished ? - 

*580. What did the Holy of Holies contain ? 

*581. What the Holy or Sanctuary ? - 

*582. Describe the porch with its t^vo pillars — give their names 
and the meaning thereof, .... 

*583. Where was the Court of the Priests ? - 

*584. What did this court contain ? - 

*585. Describe the Brazen Sea and the Lavers, 

*586. Describe the Court of the People, 

*587. How long did it take Solomon to build the Temple? - 

*588. By what artificers Avas it completed ? - 

*589. Under whose superintendence ? . _ - 

590. What was now done with the Ark ? - 

591. Give an account of the dedication of the Temple, 

592. Describe the portico of Solomon's palace, and his 

throne, ...... 

593. What was the House of the Forest of Lebanon ? 

594. How did Solomon reward Hiram when all Avas finished ? 

595. Where did Solomon build a naw ? - 
*596. Where was Sheba « - -' - 

59-7. GiA^e an account of the Queen of Sheba's visit to Solo- 
mon, - - - - - - - 



Pa^e. 
184 
185 

187 
186, note. 
187 
190 
191, note. 
192 
192 
195 
195 
195 
195 
195 
195 
197 

195, 196 
196 
196 

197 
197 
198 

199 

199 
200 
200 
200 
201 
201 
201 

200 
201 
201 

201 
202 
202 
202 
202 
202 
202 
202 
202 
203, 204 

206 
206 
206 
206 
207, note, 

207 



364 EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



Page. 



598. What books of the Holy Scripture were attributed to 

Solomon '?------ 

599. What were Solomon's errors ? - - - - 207, 208 

600. Who was Jeroboam ?-.-.. 208 

601. Of what tribe was he"? - - - - • - 208 

602. What prophet foretold Jeroboam's ascent to the throne 1 208 

603. How long did Solomon reign in Jerusalem? - - 209 

604. Where was he buried ? - - • - - - 209 

605. Who succeeded him? ----- 209 
*606. What is said of the books composed by Solomon ? - 209 

607. What was the occasion of the revolt of the Ten Tribes? 212 

608. At the revolt of the Ten Tribes, whom did they make 

their king? -.--.. 213 

609. Give the date of the revolt of the Ten Tribes, 

610. How old was Rehoboam when he began to reign? - 213 

611. How many years did he reign in Jerusalem? - - 213 

612. Who succeeded Rehoboam? - . . - 213 

613. What did Jeroboam to prevent the Ten Tribes from 

returning to the house of David ? - - - 213 

614. What was Jeroboam's sin? : " * " 213-214 
*615. What manifestation of God's displeasure happened to 

Jeroboam when sacrificing at Bethel ? - - 214 
*616. What did the prophet who came to Jeroboam at Bethel 

prophesy ? - -- - - - 214 

*61 7. What is related about the disobedient prophet? - 214 

618. What other warning was given to Jeroboam ? - 215 

619. How many years did Jeroboam reign ? - - 215 

620. Who succeeded him ? ------ 215 

*621. Where was Gibbethon? ... - 216, note. 

622. How long did Nadab reign ? - - - - 216 

623. Qive an account of Baasha, - - - - 216 

624. Describe Elah's reign, - - - - - 216 

625. Who was his successor ? ... - 216 

626. How l,oug did Zimri reign ? - - - - 216 

627. Give an account of Omri's reign, ^ - - - 216 

628. Who was the founder of Samaria ?' - - - 216 

629. Why was it called so ? - - - - - 216 

630. Where is Samaria situated ? - - - - 216 

631. Who reigned over part of Israel during the time of 

Omri? - 216 

632. By whom was Omri succeeded ? - - - 216 

633. How long did Abijam reign ? - - - - 216 

634. Who succeeded him ? - - - - - 217 
*635. Give an account of Asa's reign, - - - 217 
*636. How many years did he reign ? - - - 218 
*637. Where and how was he buried ? - - - 218 

638. Give the name of Asa's successor and the date of his 

reign, - - - - - - 218 

*639. With whom did he enter into an alliance? - - 218 

640. Give the date of Ahab's reign, - . - . 219 

641. What was the name of his wife, and whose daughter 

was she ?- - - - -- 219 

642. In what particular was Ahah woi-se than Jeroboam ? - 219 

643. What did Obadiah ? - ' - - - - 219 

644. What remarkable prophet arose in the time of Ahab ? 219 

645. How was Elijah sustained ? - - - - 219 

646. Give an account of Elijah's stay with the widow at 

Zarephath, - - - - - - 219, 220 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 365 

Page. 

*647. Where was Mount Carmcl ? - - . - - 221, note. 

648. How did Elijah destroy the idolatrous priests ? - 222 

*649. Where was Beer-sheba ? - - . - - 223, note. 

650. What occurred to Elijah when hiding froni Jezebel ? - 223, 224 

651. Whom was Elijah to anoint to be prophet in his place? 224 

652. How did Ahab obtain possession of Naboth's vineyard 1 225, 226 

653. What prophet foretold the death of Ahab and his wife ? 226 
*6.54. How did Ahab overcome Ben-hadad ? - - 227 
*655. Where was Ramoth-gilead ? - - - - 228, note. 
*656. What do we understand by " the sons of the prophets V 228, note. 
*657. Who Avas Micaiah ?--.-- 229 
*658. Give an account of the battle at Ramoth, - - 229 
*659. How was Elijah's prediction about Ahab fulfilled T - 230 
*660. Who succeeded Ahab ? .... 230 
*661. How long did Ahaziah reign ? - - - - 230 
*662. Who succeeded Ahaziah on the throne of Israel 1 - 231 

663. What were the circumstances of Elijah's end 1 - 232 

664. Who was his successor ? - - - - 232 

665. How did Jehoram prosper in his war Avith Moab 1 , - 233 
*666. What miracle did Elisha perform for the Shunammite 

woman? -.-.._ 234 

*667. What is the story of Naaman the Syrian ? - - 236 

*668. By whom was he healed ? - - - - 236 

*669. What was the conduct of Gehazi ? - - - 237 

*670. Where was Dothan ? - - - - - 237, note. 

*671. How did Elisha astonish Ben-hadad ? - - . - 238 

*672. How were the Israelites relieved at the siege of Samaria ? 238, 239 

*673. Where was Engedi ? - - - - - 239, note. 

*674. Where was the Avildemess of Tekoa ? - - - 240, note. 

675. What valley was called the Valley of Berachah ? - 240 

676. How long did Jehoshaphat reign ? - - - 240 

677. Where was he buried ? - - - - - 240 

678. Who succeeded him ? - -^ - - - .- 240 

679. How came Ben-hadad by his death ? - - - 241 

680. Who was his successor ? - - - - 241 

681. How came Joram and Ahaziah by their deaths ? - 242 

682. Where was Megiddo ? - - - - - 242, note. 

683. Give the history of Jehu, .... 242 
*684. By what means did he ascend the throne ? - - 242 

685. How came Jezebel by her death ? . - - 243 

686. How did Jehu destroy the worship of Baal ? - - 243 

687. How long did Jehu reign in Samaria ? - - 244 

688. Who succeeded him ? - - - - - 244 

689. How long did Athaliah reign ? - - - - 244 

690. Whose daughter was Athaliah ? - - - 

691. How came Athaliah by her death ? - - - 244 

692. Describe the reign of Joash, - - . - - 245 

693. Whose son was he ? - - - - - 244 

694. How old was he when he began to reign ? - - 245 

695. Describe his later years, - - - . 245, 246 

696. By whom was he rescued ? - - - - 244 

697. What prophet was killed by him ? - - - 245 

698. Give the date of the prophet, . - . . 246 

699. Whose son Avas this prophet ? - - - - 245 

700. Who was Jehoahaz ?---.. 247 

701. Describe the reign of Joash, king of Israel, - - 248,249 

702. Describe the reign of Amaziah, . - , 248, 249 



366 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



Page. 

703. Give the date of Amaziali*s reign, - - - 248 

704. Who succeeded Joash '?---- 249 

705. How long did Amaziah reign, and who succeeded him ? 249 

706. Over whom did he gain a victory, and by whom was 

he defeated? ------ 249 

707. How did he come hy his death 1 - - - 249 

708. How old was Uzziah when he began to reign 1 - 249 

709. What was his other name '?---- 249 

710. Give an account of Uzziah's reign, - - - 249 

711. What Avas his sin, and. what his punishment 1 - 250 

712. Who succeeded him ? ..... 250 

713. Describe the reigu of Jotham, - _ - 250 

714. Who was Jo thani's successor ? - - - 250 

715. Describe the reign of Jeroboam II. over Israel, - 250, 251 

716. Give the date of his reign, - - . . 250 
*717. What prophets flourished in his i-eign 1 - 251, 252, 254 
*7 18. Relate the history of Jonah, - - . - 251,252 
*719. Give an account of the city of Nineveh, - - 251, note. 
*7 20. K elate the history of Amos, - - - - 25^,253 
*721. Who was Hosea "? ..... 254 
*722. At what time did he prophesy 1 - . - 254 
*723. AVhat followed the death of Jeroboam II, - - 254 

724. How came Zachariah by his death 1 - - - 255 

725. How long did Shallum reign, and who succeeded him ? 255 

726. What occurred to Israel under Menahem 1 - - 255,256 

727. How long did Pekahiah reigu "? - - - 256 

728. How did'^lie die ? ..... 256 

729. How long did Pekah reign ] . - . - 256 

730. What occurred to IsraeHn his reign ? - - - 256 

731. What took place on the death of Pekah? - - 256 

732. What occurred in the early part of Ho^hea's reign 1 - 256 

733. What events attended the destruction of the kingdom 

of Israel ? 256 

734. Who was the last king of Israel ? - . - 256 

735. How long did the kingdom of Israel last? - - 256 

736. Who conquered Hoshea ? - - - - 256 
*737. Who were the Cutheans, and how were they called by 

the Greeks ? - - - - - - 257, note. 

*738. When was Isaiah called to the prophetical office ? - 257 

*739. Why was he called the royal prophet ? - - 257, note. 

740. How did he come by his end according Iko tnidition ? - 257, note. 

*741. What prophet was a contemporary of Isaiah? - 259 

*742. Where was Moresheth ? . - . . 259, note. 

*743. Give the date of Micah's ])rophetical career, - - 259 

744. Wlio succeeded Jotham on the throne of Judah ? 260 

745. Give the date of his reign, . - . . 2G0 

746. Who invaded Judah during his reign ? - - 261 

747. What king came to help Ahaz against his allied ene- 

mies? ------- 261 

748. What was the age of Ahaz at his death ? - - 262 

749. How was he buried ? - - - . - - 262 

750. What was the name of his successor ? - - - 262 

751. Mention the chief particulars of Hezekiah's reign, - 262, 263 

752. What did he with the Brazen Serpent? - - 263 

753. Who invaded Judah during his reign ? - - 264 

754. Give an account of this invasion, - - - 264, 265 

755. What interference took place for his deliverance ? - 267 

756. Who was Merodach Baladan ? ... 267 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



367 



Page. 

267 

268 
269 
269 

269 
270 
270 
270 
270 
270 
271 

271 

271 
271 
272 
273 

273 
273 

275 



757. By whom and on what occasion Avas the Babylonian 

Captivity first foretold'? - - - - 

758. When did Nahum prophesy ? - 

759. Wlio was the successor of Hezekiah ? - 

760. How old was he when he bei^an to reign ? - 
*761. Who invaded Judah during his reign, and in what 

year of it ? - 

762. How long did he reign ? - - - - 

763. Describe the reign of Amon, - . - - 

764. Who succeeded him ? - 

765. How old Avas Josiah when he began to reign ? - 

766. Give the date of his reign, .... 

767. Describe liis reign, .... - 270, 

768. What steps did he take for the restoration of the wor- 

ship of God? - . ■ ■ ." 

769. By what important event was the 18th year of his 

reign sisrnalled ?.---- 

770. Who was Hu Ida? ..... 

771. What kind of Passover did Josiah keep? 

772. In what battle did he die? . . . - 

773. Who was his successor ? - - - - 
*774. When did Zephaniah prophesy 'i - - . 
*775. When Habakkuk? 274, 

776. Describe the misfortunes of the reign of Jehoahaz, - 276, 

777. Who succeeded him ? - - - - 
*778. Relate the history of Jeremiah, ... 
*779. When did he prophesy ? .... 
*780. Who was Uriah ?..--. 
*781. What was his fate? .... - 
*782. Where was Carchemish ? . - - - 

783. What happened there ? - - - • - 

784. Describe the reign of Jehoiakim, ... 

785. What is the date of the-beginning of the Babylonian 

Captivity? ...... 279, 280 

786. What was Jehoiakim's end? .... 280 

787. Who was his successor ? . - . - 280 

788. How long did he reign ? .... 280 

789. What happened in the reign of Jehoiachin? - - 280,281 

790. Who was Ezekiel? . . - - - 281 

791. How old was he when carried away captive ? - - 281 

792. Where did he prophesy ? - - - - 281 

793. How long was Jehoiachin kept a captive ? - - 281 

794. By Avhom was he brought out of prison ? - - 281 

795. Who was his successor ? — give both names, - - 281 

796. In what relationship stood he to Jehoiachin? - - 281 

797. Give the date of his reign, ... - 281 

798. What provocation did he give to Nebuchadnezzar? - 284 

799. What was his fate? - - - - - 286 

800. What chief events attended the dissolution of the king- 

dom of Judah ? - - - - ' - 285, 286 

801. Who was the last king of Judah' ... 286 

802. How long did the kingdom of Judah exist? - - 286 

803. What two prophecies were fulfilled in respect to Zede- 

kiah? --.--.. 286 

804. Reconcile these prophecies, .... 286 

805. How was eJeremiah treated by Zedekiah? - - 285,286 

806. By whom and on what day was the Temple destroyed ? 287 



, -I t 
277 
277 
277 
277 
277 

note. 
278 
278, 279 



278 



368 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



807. 



809. 
810. 
811. 
812. 

*813. 
814. 
815. 
816. 
817. 

818. 

819. 

820. 
821. 
822. 
823. 
824. 
825. 
826. 
827. 
82S. 
829. 
*830. 
831. 
832. 
833. 
834. 
835. 
836. 
837. 
838. 
839. 
840. 
841. 
842. 
843. 
844. 
845, 

846. 
847. 
848. 
849. 
8.50. 
851. 
852. 

8.53. 
8.54. 
855. 



Page. 

When, where, and by whom Avere the people of Judah 

taken captives ?----- 286 

Whom did Nebuchadnezzar appoint governor over the 

remnant of the people ? - - - - 287 

What befell him ? - - - - - 288 

How was Jeremiah treated by Nebuchadnezzar ? - 287 

What became of Jeremiah? . . - . 288 
What book is ascribed to Jeremiah besides that which 

bears his name ? - - - - - 288 

When did Obadiah prophesy ? - - - - 289 

What was the condition of the Babylonian captives ? 291 

Who were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariahl 292 

By Avhat other names were they known 1 - - 292 
What was Nebuchadnezzar's dream and Daniel's inter- 
pretation? ...... 293, 294 

What other Jewish captives besides Daniel did Nebu- 
chadnezzar promote ? ... - 294 
What happened to Sbadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego 

in Babylon? ..--.- 295 

How did it affect the king ? . - . - 296 

In what consisted the impiety of Belshazzar's feast 1 - 296 

Relate what happened durir^g its celebration, - - 297 

Relate the interpretation given by Daniel, - - 297 

How was it accomplished ? - - - - 298 

Give the name of the last king of Babylon, - - 298 

To what monarch did Babylon then become subject ? - 298 

Why was Daniel cast into the lions' den ? - - 299 

By whose order ? .... - 300 

What was the consequence ? - - - - 300 

What is the name of Ahasuerus in profane history? - 301, note. 

Why did he repudiate Vashti ? - - - - 301 

Who was Esther ?.---- 302 

By whom was she brought up ? - - - 302 

How did Mordecai save Ahasuerus' life ? - - 303 

WhowasHaman? .... - 303 

What gave rise to Haman's hatred of the Jews ? - 303 

How did he plot their destruction ? - - - 304 
How was the plot frustrated ? - - - - 305, 306 

What was Haman's end ? - - - - 307 

What was the occasion and date of the Feast of Purim ? 309 

What is the signification of the Avord Purim ? - - 309 

Who was Cyrus? - - - - - 310 

Give some account of him, - - - - 310 

Who released the Jews from captivity at Babylon ? - 310 
Who issued a proclamation for the building of the 

Temple? - - - - - - 310 

How many of the exiles returned to Jerusalem? - 310 

Under whom? - - - - - - 310 

Give the date of the return, - - - - 310 

Who were Zerubbabel and Joshua ? - - - 310 

Of what tribes were they ? - - - - 310 

Who laid the foundation of the second Temple ? - 312 
Who offered their assistance to the Jews to rebuild the 

Temple? 312 

Was it accepted ? - - - - • 312 

What interruption did this effect in consequence ■? - 312 

What and where was the Sea of Joppa? - - 312 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



369 



856. 

857. 

858. 
859. 
860. 
861. 
862. 
863. 
864. 
865. 
866. 
867. 



869. 
870. 
871. 
872. 
873. 

874. 
875. 
876. 
877. 

878. 

879. 
880. 

881. 

*882. 

883. 

884. 
885. 

*886. 
*887. 

*888. 
889. 
890. 

891. 
892. 
893. 

894. 
895. 

*896. 

897. 

898. 

899. 

*900. 



Page. 
Give an account of the disagreement between the Jews 

and the Samaritans, - - - - - 312, 313 

What prophets encouraged Zerubbabel and Joshua in 

rebuilding the Temple 1 - - - - 314 

Who was Haggai ? - - - - - 314 

What did he predict ? - ... - 314 

Who was Zechariah ? ... - - 314 

What did he prophesy ? - - - - 314 

Who was Tatnai ? - - - - - 316 

When did the dedication of the Temple take place ? - 317 

Who was Ezra?- - - - - - 318 

To what tribe did he belong ? - - - - 318 

What was his office ? ----- 319 

What reform did he effect ? - - - - 321 

In how many months were all the strange wives dis- 
missed ? .... -_ - 322 

Who gave Ezra permission to return to Jerusalem "? - 319 

How many persons accompanied him 1 - - 320 

To whom are the two Books of Chronicles attributed ? 323 

By what names are they known in the Hebrew Bible ? 323 
What period of time do the events recorded in these 

books comprehend ? - - - - - 323 

What was their object ? ... - 323 

By whom was Ezra succeeded in his office? - - 324 

Who was Nehemiah 1 - - - - - 324 

What office did he hold in the Persian Court ? - 324 
What request did Nehemiah make of the king of 

Persia? 325 

What was the object of his mission ? - - - 325 
What circumstances attended the accomplishment of 

his design ?---..- 326 

Who was Sanballat? - - - - - 326 

What was the cause of hatred between the Samaritans 

and the Jews 1 . - . - - 326, note. 
What reforms did Nehemiah effect ? - - - 327, 328 
In which of his labors was he assisted by Ezra ? - 329, 330 
Who changed the old Hebrew characters for the Chal- 
dean? ._--.. 328 
When was the Eeast of Trumpets celebrated ■? - 328, note. 
When was the beginning of the year in all ecclesiasti- 
cal matters ? - - - - - - 329, note. 

When in all civil matters ? - - - - 329, note. 

When did Nehemiah return to the Persian Court? - 331 
What irregularities happened at Jerusalem during Ne- 

hemiah's absence ? - - - - - 332 

What was done by Sanballat in Samaria ? - - 332 
How long did Nehemiah's administration last 1 - 333 
What prophet lived at this time, and assisted Nehe- 
miah in his labors ? - - - - - 333 

What High-priest's son married a woman of Samaria ? 332 
By whom was he made High-priest of the Temple on 

Mount Gerizim ?----- 332 

What are the particulars in which the Samaritans and 

the Jews differed ?-.--- 333 

Who was the last of the prophets ? - - - 333 

When did he live ? . - . - - 333 

Who was assisted by him in his labors ? - - 333 
Where was Uz?- - - - - - 336, note. 



370 EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 

Page, 

*901. Who was Job? - - - - - 336 
*902. When did he live? - - - - - 336, note. 

*903. How far was Satan permitted to try Job ? - - 337 

*904. Who were the three friends that came to comfort Job? 337 

*905. What sacrifice did God require of his three friends ? - 341 

906. When did Job die? ..... 341 
*907. What is meant by the book called **The Song of 

Songs?" 341 

*908. What is said of the book Koheleth ? - - - 342 
*909. What is the diversity of opinion in regard to the age 

and author of this book ? - . - - 342 
*910. By whom is the earliest statement of the number of 

books in the Old Testament given ? - - - 345 
*911. How many are there ? . . - - - 345 
*912. What was the great work of Ezra? . - - 345 
*913. By whom was the Canon of the Holy Scriptures com- 
pleted? ...... 345 

*914. Who was Simon the Just ? .... 345, note. 

*915. Of how many books does the Canon now consist? - 346 

*916. What is the Septuagint? .... 346 

*9 17. Why is it so called? .... - 346 

*918. What is meant by the Greek word Apocryphal - 346 

*9 19. Name the twenty-four books of the Bible, - - 346 

*920. How many Apocrj'phal Books are there ? - - 347 

*921. Name them, - 347 

*922. By what names is the Holy Land known ? - - 347 

*923. Why is it called " The Land of Canaan ? '* - - 347 

*924. Why "The Land of Israel?" .... 347 

«-925. Why is it called " The Land of the Hebrews ? " - 347 

*926. Why the " Holy Land ? " "Palestine?" "Judea?" 347 

*927. Give the situation of the country, - - - 347 

*928. How is it bounded ? 347, 348 

*929. What was its length ? - - - - - 348 

*930. What its width? 348 

*931. What mountains extend through the whole country 

from north to south ? - - - - - 348 

*932. Where are the Mountains of Gilead ? - - - 348 

*933. Where was Bashan, and for what was it celebrated ? - 348 
*934. Where were the Mountains of Abarim, Pisgah, and 

Nebo? 348 

*935. Where is Mount Carmel? - - - - 348 

*936. Where were the Mountains of Israel, or Ephraim? - 348 

*937. Name the single mountains, - - - : 348 

*938. Which of these is situated near Jerusalem? - - 348 

*939. Where is the Valley of Hinnom? - - - 348 

*940. What is said of it? 348 

*941. Where is the Valley of Jehoshaphat? ... 348 

*942. By Avhat other name is it known ? - - - 348 

*943. Where is the Vale of Shiddim? ... 348 

*944. Where is the Valley of Mamre ? - - . 348 

*945. Where is the Valley of Elah? - - . . 348 

*946. Name the valleys in the Holy Land, - - - 348 

*947. How many plains are there in the Holy Land? - 348 

*948. Name them, ...... 348 

*949. What is the Plain ?--... 348 

*950. Where was Sharon ? - - - - - 348 

*951. Where the Plain of Esdrselon ? ... 348 

*952, Where is the Plain of Jericho? ... 348 



EXAMINATION QUESTIONS. 



371 



*953. Where was the Wilderness of Judea ? - - - 

*954. What is said of the Desert ? - - - - 

*955. Which is the most important river of the Holy Land? 
*956. Descriljeit, ...... 

*957. What is said of the other rivers? - - 

*958. Name them, ------ 

*959. How many seas are there in the Holy Land ? - 

*960. Name them, ------ 

*961. Who were the original inhabitants of the country ? 
*962. What became of them? - . - - . 

*963. What tribes inhabited Canaan in Abraham's time? 
*965. What were its principal inhabitants during the reign 
of Israel ?------ 

*966. What were its inhabitants in later times ? - - 

*966. Who were the Philistines? - . - - 

*967. HoAv was the country divided by Joshua? 

*968. How long was this division preserved ? - - 

*969. Who was the next to divide the land ? - 

*970. How was it divided by him? - - - - 

*971. How was the country divided after Solomon? 

*972. Of what tribes did the two kingdoms consist ? 

*973. What was the capital of the Kingdom of Israel? 

*974. How was the country divided in post-biblical times ? - 

*975. Name the biblical countries of Asia west of Palestine, 

*976. What countries are south of Palestine 1 - - 

*977. Name the countries east of Palestine, - 

*978. What countries do we meet north of Palestine ? 

*979. What is said of all these empires ? - 

*980. Which is the most important biblical country in Africa? 

*981 . How long was Egypt inhabited by the Israelites ? 

*982. What was its capital ? - 

*983. By what name was it known in the Bible ? - 

984. Who was the greatest of all the prophets ? - 

985. From what mountain did Israel receive the Law ? 

986. Who enforced the keeping of the Sabbath ? - 

987. Who was called the sweet Psalmist of Israel ? - 

988. By what two women did God deliver Israel ? - 

989. Give the names of the prophetesses in Israel, - 

990. What form of government did Moses establish ? 

991. What tribe furnished the religious teachers in Israel? 

992. When did Moses begin to declare the Law ? - 

993. Who was told not to judge by outward appearances ? - 

994. How long were the years in Noah's time ? - 

995. What king sent out teachers to instruct the people ? - 

996. To whom did God reveal Himself as the All-merciful 

and All-just One ? - 

997. To whom did He reveal Himself as the most Holy and 

All-comprising One ? - - . - 

998. To whom did God say : Walk before Me, and be 

perfect?" --.-.. 

999. What book teaches that God often permits good to be 

afflicted? .--.-. 

1000. What are the teachings of the book of Jonah, - 

1001. On what occasion was the Divine charge given to Israel : 

" Yk shall be unto Me a Kingdom of Priests, 
And a Holt Nation ? - - - - 



Page. 
348 
348 
349 
349 
349 
349 
349 
349 
349 
349 
349 

349 
349 
349 
349 
350 
350 
350 
350 
350 
350 
350 
350 
350 
350, 351 
351 
351 
351 
351 
351 
351 
92 
62 
332 
196 



134, note. 

69,75 

87 

145 

10, note. 
238 

66 

257 



337 
252 



62 



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I. A NEW PBACTICAL HEBREW GHAMMAR. 



H. HO' 



New York. 8vo. Price, 



oO. 



F?w/i Prof. A. P. Feahody, Actmg President of Harvard Univcrnty. 
I cannot express myself too warmly as to its surpassino; excellence. My belief 
is that, with the sole "use of your Grammar, a student could become a more accu- 
rate Hebrew scholar, than by readiuj;- half the Old Testament with the use of any [ 
other Hebrew Grammar with which I am acquainted. '■ 

Dr. Ezra Abbot., of Harvard UnU'ersity, says of the ivork: [ 

Dr. Deiitsch's " ebrew Grammar will be th€iueans of imparting a more thorough j 

knowledge of Hebrew ban is gained by the study of the ordinary Grammars m \ 

the ordinary way. " j 

From Eev. Dr. S Adkr, Rabbi of the Temple '•' Emamiel'"' Nexo Yorh. j 

The work is both coitcise and comprehensive, combining thoroughness of treat- 
ment and fulhiess of maiter with brevity and prL'cision ; aiid it will prove a valua- i 
ble auxiliary, alike to teacher and scholar, and in the school-rooui as well as in 
the closet. . 

From " The Nation.''' 
As regards the method, we can say without hesitation, that we have never yet 
met with a manual so pleasantly pavin"- the way to the ^S*'ary treasures of an 
ancient language. It fully deserves to be ranked among thel^eraost productions i 
of its kind, whether in America or in Eitrope. 

From "• The Israelite.'''' 
It is nearer approaching our idea of a practical Hebrew Grammar than any other ' 
book known to ns. It c'ontains all that is necessary to know of the Hebrew to 
read the Bible in their original, and it contains all that in a pleasant and practical 
form. 

F7vm '• The Jewish Messenger. '^ 
Dr. Deittsch, of Baltimore, is known as a thorough Hebraist, and has evidently 
enjoyed valuable experience as a teacher. The work is eminently practical, and, 
as we have said, should be promptly introduced into our schools. 

II. A KEY TO THE PENTATEUCH, | 

H. HOLT, New York. 8vo. Price, SI. 50. i 

From Prof. A. i\ Peahody, Late Acting President of Harvard Unirersify. 
It seems tc rae conformed to tie only true method of teaching HebroAv. When \ 
I taught Hebrew. .1 ^vas accustomed to do in manuscript for my pupils tlie very 
work— a« far as I was a'lle— which you have done in your Key Your book has au 
ulterior value as a ccimmeu tary on Genesis, and in that respect it seems to me pre- 
eminently sound aid richly iu'structi\e. 

I< .. />, n ' ' The Nation . ' ' 
The work is very elabr rate and very carefully done. It will thus undoubtedly 
be found au excellent help and guide both by students and teachers. 

From " The Jeivish Times.'"' 
It is concise, scientific, and practical, and, hence, a worthy successor to the 
author's previous production of "J. Neiv Practical Hebrew Gravmiar.'' The work 
of Dr. Deutsch surpasses aii similar school-books, and deserves to be introduced 
into every school and ins tution where the Hebrew language is cultivated. 

From " The Jeicish Messenger."'' 
We cordially ruiimend the work to the public, and trust that Dr. Deursch will 
be so liberally -.ncouraged that he will not hesitate to produce at an early day the 
remaining vo\uii)"s of his series. 



